Doubles team paces Warriors' 3rd-place sectional showing

St. Charles North boys tennis coach Tim Matacio had a lot in his hands after the Lake Park sectional finished Saturday.

In one hand was a poster board with all the team scores on it. In his other was the sectional title plaque his North Stars won as a team after qualifying three players to next week's state tournament.

"I love taking these plaques to our athletic director," said Matacio, whose team also won sectional titles in 2002, 2003 and 2007. "He gets a kick out of them, and we won it by a fairly healthy margin."

Freshman singles player John Mittvick and the doubles team of David Johnson and Christian Hoskey all qualified for the North Stars, who scored 22 points.

"I'm so excited just to make it to the finals," Mittvick said. "That's what I was hoping for -- a team victory."

Bartlett was second with 17, as a pair of singles players, senior Yosh Patel and Kevin Veatch, played each other for third and fourth place.

"They've been playing practice matches (against each other) every single day and they train together all season, so it was very relaxing for them," Bartlett coach Brian Page said. "They are pretty happy they made state."

Wheaton Academy scored 16 points for third place after its doubles team of Devin Moore and Charles West placed second.

Doubles team Sam Gunther and Kirk Nelson helped St. Charles East take fourth place.

"I'm happy for them they are going to state," St. Charles East coach Sena Drawer said. "Hopefully, they will be able to turn it on and play some really good tennis. That's their goal."

Geneva earned fifth place after Pat Coveney and Wes Kappel finished third in doubles. Glenbard North took sixth, as senior Matt Boguslawski won the singles championship.

"Matt played awesome," Glenbard North coach Doug Clark said. "He really hasn't been pushed too much this year (28-2 record)…he's on a roll right now, and we are looking for a medal."

West Chicago, Lake Park and South Elgin did not have any players qualify for state.

Boguslawski, a senior, beat Mittvick, 6-3, 6-1. This is the second time he's qualified for state. Last year, he finished in the top 36.

"I'm really, really excited I won the sectional," Boguslawski said. "Hopefully, I get a good seed at state and I do my best. (Mittvick) was a tough player for a freshman. He'll probably win this next year, next couple of years."

In Mittvick's first year on varsity, he was the North Stars' No. 1 singles player all season. His second-place showing was solid, considering his competition.

"John (Mittvick) came in with a 19-4 record…so we knew he was going to be a tough one," Clark said. "Hopefully, (Boguslawski) keeps it going."

"Johnny has been battling seniors all year long," Matacio added. "He's had a phenomenal first year. Just phenomenal."

A pair of regular season teammates, Patel and Veatch, took each other on for third place. Patel came out on top, 6-2, 6-3. Patel qualified last year as part of a doubles team.

"It was friendly competition," Patel said. "It's always a good game every time we play. I was a little tired on this one, and obviously, so was he."

Veatch has been playing tennis since just his freshman year, so to qualify for state for the first time is huge for him.

"It's a big accomplishment," he said. "It's been a fun ride."

Sophomores Johnson and Hoskey upset Moore and West for first place in doubles over the freshman and junior, 6-1, 7-5. This is Johnson's second appearance at state.

Earlier in the day, West and Moore battled with Gunther and Nelson, as Wheaton Academy came out on top to advance to the finals.

Coveney, a senior, and Kappel, a junior, make their state debut after topping Gunther and Nelson, 6-4, 7-5.

"I'm happy with it," Coveney said of third place. "I thought we were pretty confident going into the match (against St. Charles East). They played well. I think we needed to play well to beat them. I'm really excited (for state). To be honest, I didn't think it was going to happen at the beginning of the season…but this is a very good feeling."

Earlier in the day, Coveney and Kappel got swept by Johnson and Hoskey, 6-0, 6-0.

"I was really happy with the follow-up win (against St. Charles East)," said Geneva coach Doug Ross. "I know they really would have been disappointed if they dropped both today. We can take this win and use the momentum going to the state finals."

Geneva beat St. Charles East in the regular season.

"I thought it would have been really fun to have the victory against them for personal satisfaction," Drawer said.

This is Gunther's second time heading to state and Nelson's debut.

"It would have hurt my pride if I didn't go back to state," Gunther said. "I'm glad we did it, I'm glad for Kirk. This should be fun. We'll play our hardest and try to do our best."

"I'm really excited," Nelson added. "Sam is a really good player. He's really competitive and really aggressive. He's always ready to go."