Week of May 21st This week the Boys’ Tennis team competed in the IHSA state finals. The doubles team of Jacob John and Tony Lu went 2-2 (earning 2 team points), and Joris Bizys went 4-2 in singles (earning 6 team points). The doubles team of Namit Sambare and Josh Eisenschenck went 6-1 (earning 9 team points), and ended up taking 5th place. The contributions of these five young men together earned a 6th place finish in state, the top finish in school history.
Week of May 7th This was a heck of a week for the Boys’ Tennis Team here at South. They traveled up to Crystal Lake on Tuesday and got a great win (4-3) versus a very tough Prairie Ridge team, before taking on Hinsdale Central at home on Wednesday. The boys played great versus Central, but were outmatched against one of the top teams in the nation, and fell 0-3. Friday started the conference tournament, where the singles players of Joris Bizys, Namit Sambare, and Josh Eisenschenk went 3-0 on the day. Saturday the boys found themselves in some tough semifinal and final matches, and won 5 of the 7 positions, beating conference rival DGS by 5 points to take home the conference title. Up next is sectional week!
Week of April 30th Another great week for the Hornets! The boys took on Downers Grove North on Monday, and won 4-3, with their wins coming at the top of the lineup, lead by Junior Joris Bizys at the 1st singles position. On Tuesday the Hornets played their last conference match of the season, showing dominance up and down the singles and doubles positions. This weekend the boys played in the super competitive NaperValley Invite, and ended up with a 7th place finish. The Hornets finished in 6th place at 1st singles, 4th place at 2nd doubles, and 5th place at 1st doubles. Up next is Prairie Ridge and Hinsdale Central, before competing in the conference tournament!
Week of April 23rd This was a good week for the Hornets! On Tuesday the boys squared off against Willowbrook, and prevailed 7-0. Two days later they traveled to Morton and found similar success. The varsity team split squads with some members heading to LWE and others heading to 1A Pitchford. At LWE, Tony Lu and doubles partner Aaron John found some nice success at the 1st doubles position, while down South in Metamora at the 1A Pitchford, Dhruv Vase and Jacob John captured 3rd place in the second doubles draw. The boys have a lot of work to do over the next few weeks, but are poised to have a special end to their season.
Week of April 16th This week the Boys’ Tennis team went 1-1 in conference, after defeating Proviso East on Tuesday and then falling 3-4 to conference rival Downers Grove South on Thursday. The Hornets are now 0-6 against DGS in the past six season, but as the veteran members of the team know, anything can happen at the conference tournament, and the boys have their sights set on another conference championship. The next two weeks will be particularly busy for the Hornets, who have 11 matches during that time. Things get started off on Monday with a dual versus a tough Hersey team, the school that plays host to the state tournament. Should be a great two weeks coming up!
Week of April 2nd This week the Boys’ Tennis team spent much of their time indoors conditioning, given the terrible weather we’ve been having as of late. Working on speed, agility, strength, and maintaining an aerobic base, the boys have shown they are one of the hardest working teams out there. Their only match play of the week came on Saturday evening, when they took on UChicago, Glenbard South, and IMSA. The Hornets found themselves a bit shorthanded, and ultimately fell to UChicago and IMSA 1-3, while tying Glenbard South 2-2 in a 2 singles, 2 doubles format. Stellar play came from Namit Sambare and Josh Eisenschenk, who both went 3-0 on the day while playing at varying positions in the lineup. The Hornets also saw sound play from freshman Dhruv Vaze and Aaron John who have managed to work their way into the top 6 of the lineup. This week the Hornets take on Leyden and LT before hosting another quad next week versus Wheaton Academy, Lemont, and Nazareth. Should be a great week!
Week of March 26th This weekend the Boys’ Tennis Team traveled to Edwardsville, IL to compete in the Tiger Invitational, which plays host to some of the top schools in the Midwest. On Friday, after a tough defeat to Belleville East 4-5, the Hornets rallied to beat Chaminade 5-4. Saturday morning the Hornets took on a tough Hersey team and were up 4-1 in matches when played was suspended due to rain. The date will be made up on April 23rd. While the Hornets have worked primarily on doubles in the early weeks of the season, the team saw terrific singles play up and down the lineup. Veteran members of the team Namit Sambare, Josh Eisenshenk, and Jacob John got the job done at the top of the lineup, while Dhruv Vaze (9), Aaron John (9), and Tony Lu (10) shored up the other doubles and singles positions. If the weekend was any indication, this season the Hornets are poised to do some remarkable things. This week we square off versus Lyons Township and host a quad on Saturday. Should be a great week.
Week of March 12th This week the Boys’ Tennis team traveled to Troy, IL where they took part in the Triad Knights Invitational. After traveling down Friday night, the boys woke up Saturday ready to play and battle both their opponents and against the weather. After putting in some solid weeks of doubles work, the Hornets found themselves advancing on the backs of their doubles teams. In the first round, they beat Mascoutah 3-2 after the doubles team of Dhruv Vaze and Jacob John pulled out a tough match at the first doubles position. In the second round, the Hornets beat a tough O’Fallon team 3-2 led by seniors Namit Sambare and Josh Eisenschenk, who set the pace for the rest of the doubles teams. In the championship match, the Hornets took on U-High, and ultimately got beat up a bit up and down the courts. Without several of their top players out, the Hornets fell 0-9, but saw some excellent singles play from freshman Aaron John. With a lot of work to do, the Hornets are eager to hit the practice courts before they head back down South in two weeks to take on some of the top teams in the Midwest in a tourney hosted by recent national champion Edwardsville High School.