Boys tennis: Naperville Central ready for Neuqua Valley
Naperville Central sophomore Martin Matov's determination just to continue playing boys tennis can't be questioned. He's had three surgeries on each knee, most recently one apiece in October.
With the help of plenty of water for his No. 1 doubles match Tuesday against Neuqua Valley, Matov and freshman partner Ammaar Saeed pulled off a different kind of incredible comeback.
After trailing 5-2 in the third set and fighting off four match points, the Redhawks rallied for a 6-0, 3-6, 7-6 (7-0) victory over senior Jack Monovich and freshman Rohan Sanjay. That completed the Redhawks' 6-1 home dual victory in the DuPage Valley Conference opener for both teams.
"When we were down, I was like, 'This is not good.' It wasn't our best tennis, but we still won it and that's just what we wanted, to win it even if it was ugly," Matov said.
"I'm playing surprisingly well. And I'm feeling stronger than I ever was. It was a struggle (returning), but I'm happy where I am right now."
The Redhawks (1-1) won two of the three three-set matches with juniors Hemanth Kalidini and Bailey Chen also winning at No. 3 doubles. Senior Bill Zhang and freshmen Nathaniel Chavez and Alex Zhao swept Nos. 2-3-4 singles, and senior Kevin Yiu and sophomore Mark Polowczak prevailed 7-5, 6-4 at No. 2 doubles.
"A lot of competitive matches. We knew it would be," Naperville Central coach Dan Brown said. "They have a really deep team, as usual, and we do this year as well."
This was Neuqua's first outdoor match. Senior and two-time state qualifier Brett Meyers won another great battle at No. 1 singles, rallying past sophomore Ryan Roegner 4-6, 6-1, 6-1.
"That was a good one," Neuqua coach Trudy Bennorth said. "We've got a little bit to learn. (Their No. 1 doubles) did a nice job of coming back to keep it going. We're still going to be making some (lineup) changes, but we'll get it."
Because of his surgeries, Matov played only eight matches last year, usually at No. 3 doubles. In the April 5 season opener at defending state champion Hinsdale Central, Matov was winning 4-1 at No. 2 singles when he began cramping. He eventually lost 6-4 but won the first game of the second set.
The match then ended immediately after Matov collapsed with a debilitating cramp in his calf.
"(His father and I) ran out on the court. As (another) player said, it looked like Martin got shot," Brown said.
There were no such problems Tuesday.
"(Matov) made sure to drink a lot of water," Saeed said. "Five bottles of water."
In the third set Matov and Saeed didn't hold their serve until winning four straight games to pull ahead 6-5. Monovich and Sanjay won the next game in five points, but then the Redhawks swept the tiebreaker.
"It was a big pendulum of momentum. Somebody was in charge at all times in that match," Brown said.
"Those match points, thinking about them, it's like that could have been it," Saeed said. "To fight that off is pretty incredible. It's a great win."
The Marquette-bound Meyers took control of his match in the third set by breaking Roegner's serve and winning the next three games after Roegner had broken Meyers to close to 2-1.
"(Bennorth) talked to me and got me refocused," Meyers said. "Once she told me to just keep moving my feet and to make sure I grind out every point, I regained the momentum."
Roegner is a transfer from Asheville High School in North Carolina, where he was a combined 24-0 in singles and doubles for 2015. He won his Illinois opener over Hinsdale Central's Nick Calzolano 6-0, 6-4.
Roegner praised Meyers for handling Tuesday's conditions, which were pretty decent for early April in Illinois until the wind picked up and temperatures dropped during the third set.
"I don't think they've played matches yet (in N.C.) and in general, it's just better weather windy-wise," Roegner said. "I love it (at Naperville Central). I think it's a blessing to have so many good, quality players on a team to practice with."