Patterson outlasts Veitch as Libertyville prevails

Libertyville sophomore Ryan Patterson was on the bus at school, all set to go with his teammates to a junior varsity tennis match at Carmel.

Varsity coach Dan Kiernan had other plans. He called Patterson off the bus to make his varsity debut.

As it turned out, Libertyville's 3-2 victory ultimately came down to Patterson's match at No. 2 singles. Patterson battled Carmel senior Brandon Veitch in a marathon match, eventually scoring a 6-4, 5-7 (10-4) victory. Instead of playing a full third set, all of the matches were decided by a 10-point tiebreaker.

Since it took almost three hours to complete, players from both teams turned their full attention to Patterson and Veitch.

"I was very conscious of (the crowd), but I had no idea the fate of the match was on me," said Patterson, who normally plays No. 1 singles on the junior varsity.

A spot opened for Patterson when the Wildcats experimented with their lineup. Libertyville used its top two singles players, senior Erik Scanlan and sophomore Anish Raman, at No. 1 doubles.

Patterson and Veitch play the same type of game. It would be an understatement to say they are comfortable with long rallies.

"It turned into (a battle) of whoever could hit it back the most," Veitch said.

Patterson and Veitch don't have classic tennis form. Patterson uses a two-handed forehand and Veitch's footwork and ground strokes will not be featured in any tennis instructional videos.

What they do have is an abundance of patience, concentration and the speed to chase down shots to prolong points.

"My (opponents) usually get frustrated," Veitch said. "I get inside their heads, they break down (mentally) and I start winning."

Added coach Nancy Fehn: "He wears people down by getting everything back. That's his bread and butter."

Since neither player would change his style, it came down to who could make the least mistakes.

That turned out to be Patterson, by a small margin.

"This will be a nice story to tell," Patterson said about his first varsity match.

In his last varsity match at Libertyville, Scanlan and Raman quickly adapted to their first doubles action of the season. They ended up with a 6-3, 1-6 (10-7) victory over Carmel's Andrew Buchholz and Chris Butler.

"I'm really aggressive and like to end points real fast, and he stays back and works the point," Scanlan said.

Raman was excited to learn he would be paired with Scanlan. Last year, he played doubles with his older brother, Vivek.

"I was pleasantly surprised," Raman said about playing doubles again. "It was a neat experience."

Butler and Buchholz went undefeated in East Suburban Conference play in the regular season. The duo placed third at the conference tournament, and they said this is the type of match that will prepare them for the sectional tournament which begins Thursday.

"We've been able to come back from hard (situations) this season," Butler said. "We're playing very well."

Carmel senior Reid Etter cruised to a 6-1, 6-3 victory at No. 1 singles.

"I was aggressive and consistent," Etter said. "I didn't give away many points."