Boys tennis: Conant claims key win in final MSL West dual
Conant's boys tennis team got itself an important win in its final dual of the regular season in the Mid-Suburban West.
The Cougars' 6-1 victory over Palatine gives Dave Koleno's group a better opportunity to earn a top-three finish in the final league standings after an impressive win fueled by a clean sweep at singles. Conant wrapped up with a 3-2 record against MSL West foes.
"We really needed and wanted this win so we could finish third overall ahead of (Palatine), and to give us a few more overall points heading into the tournament," said Koleno, whose lineup was without three regular starters but never missed a beat from the opening serve.
"Vera (Iyer) and Nico Rosas have been very steady as our Nos. 1 and 2 guys at singles, and they showed it once again today with their straight-set wins," said Koleno.
Iyer, a freshman and potential 3-4 seed in the MSL tournament, needed under an hour to defeat Patrick Weber, 6-0, 6-0. Weber was filling in for the Pirates' top player, David Chon, who was resting a sore knee.
"We didn't want to take any chances with David in advance of the conference tournament, and we knew Patrick could step in and give us his best effort against one of the top freshman players in the conference this season," said Palatine coach Jim Lange.
"(Weber) is a very good player," said Iyer, "but I just played my game, keeping everything in play and just waiting for him to make a mistake to allow me to put away the point."
Rosas (10-3), a sophomore who's undefeated in the MSL at No. 2, won 6-0, 6-0 over Anuj Shah.
"Next weekend is the start of a new season, and just because I didn't lose during the regular season, doesn't mean a thing when the tournament begins," said Rosas, who qualified for state with Nikhil Modal at doubles last spring. "Everyone has gotten better during the year, and I have a lot of respect for all of my opponents, so I won't take anyone lightly next weekend."
Conant's Arjun Rao won in straight sets at No. 3 singles.
At doubles, with Modal away for the weekend, Ryo Ishiyama played alongside Khusal Shah at No. 1 for the Cougars. They won 6-2, 6-3 against the Pirates' Connor Joseph/Jack Wiebe.
Ronik Shah/Srini Iyer were victorious at No. 2, while Shriram Chennakesavazu/Aditha Shedge collected a 6-3, 6-0 win at No. 4 for the hosts.
The Pirates' lone victory on the day came from their No. 3 doubles team of Christian Conway/Advat Patel, which prevailed 6-0, 6-4.