Scouting the Pitchford boys tennis invitational
Where: Hosted by Hersey and held at other area sites.
When: 2 p.m. Friday; semifinals and finals Saturday at Hersey.
What: This tournament, which began as a little four-team invite, and played in the Champaign area, was fnally moved north to Arlington High School as the tournament grew, at the request of Tom Pitchford, known then, and now, as Mr. Tennis in Illinois. When Pitchford passed away in the fall of 1988, the tournament was named in his honor, and it has become the tournament of all tournaments, bringing together nearly all of the top players at both singles and doubles from around the state. It also helps define many of the front-runners in advance of the three-day state tournament which begins in four weeks. Here's a brief look at what to watch for when play begins at six venues around the area on Friday afternoon.
Singles
Defending champ : Robert Stineman (New Trier).
Top eight seeds: Blake Bazarnik (Stevenson, 8-1), Brantner Jones (New Trier, 10-2), Augie Bloom (Hinsdale Central, 9-3), Ben Quazzo (Latin, 6-1), Gordan Zhang (Naperville North, 13-2), Toby Ma (Deerfield, 10-2), Tim Kopinski (Stagg, 8-0), Devon Jones (Oak Park, 5-5).
Local Figures: Erik Klawitter (No. 1 singles, Hersey, 15-1, 9-12 seed), Richard Brej (No. 2 singles, 6-1, 1-2 seed), Varun Parekh (Barrington, No. 2 singles, 14-6, 5-8 seed).
Baseline banter: "Without (Stineman) or guys like Ben Hoogland (GBS, not in tournament) and Michael Redlicki (Lake Zurich, not playing) the bulls-eye is squarely on Blake this weekend, and everyone always wants to beat the defending state champ," says Stevenson head coach Tom Stanhope. Bazarnik would see the 3-time state medalist (Bloom) in the semis if the seeds hold, however, the freshman Ma, who finished third last weekend at Hinsdale Central, is the real deal and could be Bloom's opponent in the quarters. The sophomore Zhang will be one to watch at the bottom of the bracket, with Quazzo, Kopinski and Jones all standing in his way.
Doubles
Defending champ: Hinsdale Central (Dan Ballantine-Ian Tesmond).
Top eight seeds: (Hinsdale Central, Ballantine-Tesmond, 9-0), Belleville West (James Stathis-Scott Segobiano, 17-0), Edwardsville (Jordan Leskera-Justin Leskera, 12-0), New Trier (Calvin Mang-Jared Hiltzik, 0-0), Naperville North (Reid Mutschler-Elliot Giraud, 11-1), Naperville Central (Kevin Bauman-Billy Sterrett, 10-3), Metamora (David Stewart-Nate Wilson, 11-2), Highland Park (Zack Brint-David Zak, 6-2).
Local figures: Fremd (Kenta Shimizu-Ryan Kreis, 11-1), Warren (Paul Schlais-Nikola Trukov, 15-3), St. Viator (Taylor Blaney-Dan Tanglis, 8-2), Barrington (Jim Deroche-Joe Gasior, 14-4), Prospect (Jon Kiefer-Sam Pope, 10-4).
Baseline banter: Hinsdale's No. 1 is the defending state champion, and its No. 2 (Ravella-S. Bloom) would likely receive serious consideration as a top-4 seed if this were the state tournament. There will plenty of drama and emotion for all others looking to stay alive in the championship bracket heading into Saturday. The consensus among many, is that while the field lacks the usual six-deep, star-studded teams, there is still plenty of depth to make each round tough to predict, with terrific first-day matches must-see viewing. "Kenta and Ryan need to play well this weekend, in order to help themselves for state seeding, and if we get by Latin, Metamora and Edwardsville lie ahead, so they have to be ready to play right from the start," said Fremd head coach Ken Goettsche.
Team race
What to watch: Hinsdale Central returns all but one of its starters from its state championship team, and after winning its own invite last weekend, the Red Devils enter as the team to beat. New Trier, the clear No. 2 challenger, is so deep, it could afford to keep its best player (Stineman) home this weekend, while others, such as sophomore Jared Hiltzik, stepped in last weekend to finish third (No. 1 singles) at Hinsdale. After that, it's up for grabs. Aside from the team trophy fight, many coaches have tweaked their lineups in search of the best potential lineup for the stretch run, including the moves at doubles from Oak Park and Branter Jones from No. 1 doubles to No. 1 singles for New Trier.
Weekend update: Fans can follow along all throughout the tournament on the Hersey school Web site for individual and team scores.