Benet doubles team stepping up
It might be taking Bobby Martin and Matt Rurka a little time to develop as a top-flight doubles team, but Saturday the two Benet seniors took a significant step forward.
Martin and Rurka, mainstays in the Benet doubles lineup for the past two years, qualifying for state last year with different partners, led the Redwings to a fifth-place finish at Saturday’s Downers Grove South Team Invitational.
“Bobby and Matt are now really growing together as a team,” said Benet coach Michael Hand. “They looked great in the last match against Fenwick.”
Hand called Martin and Rurka fine tennis players, noting that their graduated partners Mike Schutt and Phil Denys were the more vocal members of the doubles teams on the court, so it’s taking this year’s duo some time to find that communications.
At the Naperville North Invitational last week, the Redwings’ first doubles were upset by Abhi Singh and Deep Chatterjee of Waubonsie Valley in the first round, but they recovered to make a fine showing in the Downers Grove South tournament this week.
Hand also praised the Redwings second and third doubles Matt Garvin and Grant Gatto at second and Alex Romano and Kevin Dawson at third, for the job they did throughout the day.
As a team, the Redwings (17-4) went 3-1 on the day.
“We started to play better this week after a poor showing at the Naperville North Invitational last Saturday,” Hand said. “That was a rude awakening for us. Today, our kids did all the little things they needed to do to win.”
The tournament was won by Glenbrook South, which beat host Downers Grove South in the finals 3-2 for the second year in a row. Fremd finished third and Edwardsville was fourth.
Cody Fresichlag and Connor Harmon of Downers Grove South topped undefeated Michael Selletto and Michael Levin of Glenbrook South, one of the top doubles teams in the state. Fresichlag and Harmon have a record of 16-2 for the season.
“This victory puts Cody and Connor in the discussion of the very best doubles in the state,” said Downers Grove South coach Peter Freischlag.
Naperville Central finished seventh with a 3-2 win over Wheaton Warrenville South, and Waubonsie Valley was ninth.
The Redhawks (11-5), who were 2-2 for the day, were led by Wesley Lo and Danny Albert, who were both undefeated in their four matches. They won three matches together at first doubles, while Albert won once at first singles and Lo won a first-doubles match with partner Matt Mason.
“We had hoped to do a little better today,” said Naperville Central coach Dan Brown. “But we lost all our close matches, dropping four third-set tiebreakers. That’s something we definitely have to work on with the second half of the DuPage Valley Conference schedule.”