Scouting Cook County boys tennis
Teams to watch
Fremd
The 2008 MSL runner-up appears to have nearly everyone in its corner before the start of the season, including Barrington head John Roncone: "Ken (Fremd coach Goettsche) had a very good team last year, and has plenty of those same players back this year which makes (them) the team to beat this year." Kenta Shimizu, a 2007 state qualifier, returns as do teammates Ryan Kreis and Owen Marsden who joined Shimizu at the state tourney. Goettsche is still undecided where the duo will play for now, but several newcomers will be key figures including freshman Nick Mackowiecki, who may join one of the veterans at No. 1 doubles.
Barrington
The Broncos' lost a lot from their championship team, including all-state doubles players Matt Barns and Alex Nemz, as well as Greg Mulligan, who teamed with the returning David Martin to capture a sectional title. Martin and freshman Greg Baker may form the No. 1 doubles team, while another freshman, George Coll, is at No. 1 singles. "There's a lot of upside with our team this season, but it is going to take some time to see exactly what we have," says Roncone.
Prospect
Goettsche and Roncone agree that MSL East champ Prospect will always be in the mix because of its depth and ability to grind out victories in close matches and duals when needed. The Knights return seven from a year ago, with junior Jon Kiefer, a state qualifier at doubles along with senior Zach Adamovic available at both singles and doubles until the post-season arrives.
St. Viator
Lions finally broke 17-year run of Benet to win an East Suburban Catholic Conference title last May when Andrew Rice (now at Northwestern) and Taylor Blaney helped lead the way by winning titles at Nos. 1 and 2 singles. Rice would later go on to earn his first state tournament appearance, while Blaney gained plenty of experience at No. 2 to go 25-3 as he takes over the top spot in the lineup for second-year coach Dan Tripamer. "We'll be able to compete and make a big run at another ESCC title because of our depth and the return of some very good players."
Player to watch
Izzi Balase, Schaumburg
The Schaumburg sophomore burst onto the MSL scene last season and after finishing behind four-year stars Jonah Schwartz (Buffalo Grove, Emory College), Tom Kujawa (Prospect), Brian Piotrowski (Fremd, Illinois Wesleyan) and Mark Sansait (Rolling Meadows) at the MSL Conference tournament, Balase (27-9) would go garner a spot in the 64-man field of the state tournament after his fourth-place finish at the rugged Glenbrook South sectional. This season, a bigger, stronger and quicker Balase brings an impressive USTA ranking (20th) in the Chicago area into the MSL and an immediate favorite status along with the aforementioned Shimizu.
Court dates
April 9, St. Viator at Benet: This early-season dual has been the set point in deciding the eventual ESCC champ of late, until last season when Benet would defeat the Lions 3-2 en route to a perfect 10-0 regular season record, only to watch its rival come back to win the conference tournament and overall team championship for the first time ever.
Plenty of new faces will dot both lineups this time around with both sides looking to go "one-up" on the competition.
April 11, Benet-Downers Grove Team Tournament: Barrington makes its first tourney appearance of the 2009 season in this 12th annual event which features, among others New Trier and Deerfield, along with Moline and Naperville North. If still together at No. 1 doubles, the DGS team of Rahul Kamath and Brian Sorich will be one to watch.
April 18, Knight/Huskie Invite: Barrington, Hersey and Prospect all get a close-up view of perennial heavy-hitters Highland Park and Oak Park-River Forest, while defending state singles champion Denis Bogatov of Warren is the marquee player on the scene while here. Libertvyille and Moline round out the 8-team party.
April 25, Hinsdale Central Invite: Who's who of high school tennis appears at the blockbuster with the host and defending team champion Red Devils the headline act and just in front of New Trier, Deerfield, Highland Park, Lyons, Oak Park-River Forest, Warren and Barrington.
April 25, Buffalo Grove Invite: In its first trip to this tourney, St. Viator grabbed a third-place trophy behind Stevenson and Glenbrook North, who figure to be 1-2 once again when the final match is completed. Palatine head coach Steve Pass, who will retire following this season after 31 years of coaching, brings his club here one final time.
May 1-2, The Pitchford 32: The biggest and best of all tournaments, the "32" will set the bar for many who haven't been seen all season long, and others who will look to make an imprint on the field and in the eyes of the seeding committee one month later at the state tournament.
May 14-16: MSL, NSC, ESCC, CSL conference tournaments.
Game, set, match
Before 2000, New Trier and Hinsdale Central led the way with 13 state championships with Oak Park-River Forest right behind with nine. During a 3-year span from 2001-03, New Trier rolled over and through the competition winning three straight by an average of 20 points, before passed in the fast lane by Lake Forest, Hinsdale Central, Deerfield and Glenbrook North, who helped the North Shore dominate the leaderboard.
Last season, in a race that went down to the very end, Hinsdale Central gave longtime head coach Jay Kramer his 15th title, but only after New Trier, led by the coaching duo of former star alums Tad Eckert and Peter Rose and NSC champ Stevenson put a scare into the Hinsdale Central faithful to nearly grab the big prize.
Both Hinsdale Central and New Trier are loaded, returning most if not all of its top 7-8, including Augie Bloom (Hinsdale Central) and Robert Stineman (New Trier), while Stevenson is superb at the top with junior Blake Bazarnik and sensational duo of sensation of Ross Putterman and David Packowitz, who as freshmen last season were runners-up to state doubles champs Ben Woldenberg and Sam Barnett of Highland Park.
Bazarnik (27-5) is one of 11 of the top 16 seeds from the state tournament field who are returning including the wonderfully talented Denis Bogatov, and state medalists Michael Moore (Glenbrook South, fifth), Drew Feder (Belleville East, sixth) and Bloom (third).
"The great thing about the field at (singles) is that there are maybe seven or eight players who all feel as if they have a terrific chance to be playing in the state final, while another eight to 10 others who can be right (there) in the back-draw and fighting for a medal when it is all said and done," said Deerfield coach and former Palatine coach Josh Leighton. While Putterman-Packowitz (31-4) seem to be the early season favorite, with New Trier likely to move Stineman to No. 1 singles and his doubles partner from a year ago (Brantner Jones) alongside another, state medalists Dan Ballantine-Ian Tesmond (fifth from Hinsdale Central) will have something to say later on, as will the Neuqua Valley team of Skeeter Plowman and Chase Perry. Should the two remain together for the postseason, it should be reminded that the 17-32 seed took the state champs from Highland Park to 3 sets.