Boys tennis: St. Viator savors win against Carmel
It had been a long time since St. Viator was able to solve Carmel Catholic on the tennis courts, but this time coach Amy Ritchie's team turned the tide on its league rival.
The Lions swept all three doubles flights Tuesday to fuel a 4-1 victory over the Corsairs in an East Suburban Catholic Conference opener in Arlington Heights at the Forest View Tennis Club.
"We lost a lot of experienced players from last year's team, so I was a little nervous heading into this match against an always strong squad from Carmel," said Ritchie. "But the guys really came through, especially at doubles to help get us a very nice win."
The Lions coach says she's still sorting out her lineup at singles, but watched those doubles teams record straight-set victories, beginning with the No. 1 team of Jack Aiello/Matt Firestone, who individually, njoyed terrific seasons a year ago when the Lions finished second overall in the ESCC tourney behind Class 1A state power Benet Academy.
"Jack gained a lot of experience when he and Nick Gattuso qualified for state last year, so he brings that with him this season, while Matt, who finished fourth overall at conference at No. 2 (singles), has that part of his game to make them a very good No. 1 for us," said Ritchie. "Those two may not be the biggest hitters around, but their collective tennis IQ is very good. They know how to set up shots and have terrific patience and composure to go along with some wonderful chemistry between them."
"Amy has a nice team this year," said Carmel coach Chris Kannenberg, now in his sixth year. "She has depth and some strong doubles teams which we had a little trouble with today."
The Corsairs lost their top player from a year ago, Jonathan Paulsen, who followed in the footsteps of older brothers CJ (2012) and Craigh (2013), both of whom had advanced into the state tournament during their final season at Carmel.
"Jonathan was a tough one to lose, but fortunately, we have a couple of players who are vying for his spot as our No. 1 - one of whom did quite well today in Scott Haseman," said Kannenberg.
The senior won in straight sets (6-0, 6-1) over Jack Beletti in the Corsairs' lone victory.
"The weather has been so poor for everyone, so it will take another week or two to figure things out as we continue to get duals and weekend tournaments under our belt," said Kannenberg. "Then, for us, we should have a better handle on what our lineup will look like."
Carmel's coach said he'd lean on Mitch LoMastro and Mitch Whalen, who earned third-place honors at No. 3 doubles last year in the ESCC tournament.
Against St. Viator, Kannenberg split up the veterans. Whalen was at No. 2 singles and dropped a hard-fought 3-setter to Liam Harding.
LoMastro was at No. 2 doubles, where he and partner Nathan Shedler fell to Matt McManaman/Andrew Kicinski, 6-1, 6-2.
Robert Douglas/Ryan Flynn also recorded a straight set triumph (6-3, 6-1) at No. 3 doubles for Ritchie.
"We don't have a true No. 1 singles player as we've had the past few seasons with Kyle Borst (2017 state qualifier)," said Ritchie. "So while we figure that part of our lineup for awhile, it will be the strength of this team (doubles) that will help carry us through."
The Lions have a date with Wheaton Academy this week, then travel to Timothy Christian on Saturday for a quad there.