Published: October 06, 2008 11:33 pm            

North boys look for more tennis regional success

TERRE HAUTE — If you’re wondering about southwest Indiana weather forecasts for the next couple of days, Jim Cook would be a man to ask.

The Terre Haute North High School tennis coach keeps an eye on the conditions very closely once or twice a year, those times coming when one of his teams is heading to Vincennes for regional play.

And with starting times for this week’s matches pushed back a half hour, he’s been every bit as vigilant this week as in the past as his boys team prepares for play beginning today.

“It’s not a good scenario when you’ve got to go down there two times, maybe three if the weather does what it looks like it might,” said Cook, who remembers all too well a girls regional a few years ago during which his Patriots had to make the bus ride on four consecutive evenings before rain let up enough to let them complete play successfully.

You’ll notice, however, that Cook mentioned making the trip two or three times this week; losing tonight’s first-round match is not part of the Patriot plan, nor should it be.

The 10th-ranked Patriots, 15-2 for the season, play Pike Central in one of the two 6:30 p.m. matches today, with North Posey and Vincennes Rivet competing in the other. The winners meet at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday — weather permitting.

It’s the ninth time in 10 years that North’s boys have been in the Vincennes Regional, and they’ve won it on all but one of those occasions. Twice in that span the Patriots have also emerged from the Jasper Semistate, leading to runner-up and fourth-place finishes at the state finals.

The other three teams there tonight don’t have those credentials.

“You’d think you’d probably be the favorite, with that ranking and all,” Cook admitted Monday. “But you’ve got to prove it; that’s the bottom line.”

Cook doesn’t remember any recent matches against Pike Central; Wood Memorial was the Patriots’ most recent opponent from the Princeton Sectional.

“North Posey might be the strongest [among the other three sectional champions at Vincennes],” Cook said Monday. “They were undefeated at one time — they may still be — and they knocked out Evansville Central, which has one of the best individual players in the state in Nick Volz. So [North Posey’s Vikings] must be fairly solid all the way through the lineup.”

That latter statement describes the Patriots too, however.

North’s seniors have the best individual records on the team, with Todd Butwin 19-4 at No. 1 singles and the team of Michael Eberle and Drew Holcomb 19-3 at No. 1 doubles. But the other Patriots aren’t far behind.

The two freshman singles players, Nick Roby and Chris Holcomb, are 17-4 and 15-5 respectively, while the No. 2 doubles team of Parker Fulkerson and Nate Sanders is 17-5.

Also at Vincennes will be West Vigo’s Joel Modesitt, who advanced in individual singles competition. Northview’s team, winner of its own sectional, will be playing Roncalli at the Center Grove Regional today.



Vincennes Regional

At Lincoln High School

Today

North Posey vs. Vincennes Rivet, 6:30 p.m.

Pike Central vs. Terre Haute North, 6:30 p.m.

Wednesday

Championship, 6:30 p.m.

        

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