Tigers Fight Off Panthers' Challenge
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
For the better part of two hours, Craig Harman and Eric Bowers talked to themselves, the frustration evident in their voices.
They complimented each other.
And two hours later, when their tennis match ended, they shook hands at the net.
It wasn't so much a tennis match as a tennis battle. Bowers, whose gray T-shirt was soaked with sweat on the front and back, held off Harman 6-4, 7-6 (7-5).
NorthWood won this battle, but Warsaw won the war. The Tigers won their seventh straight match with an important 4-1 Thursday Northern Lakes Conference win over the Panthers. Warsaw improved to 8-1 overall and 3-0 in the NLC, while NorthWood fell to 8-2 and 2-2 in the NLC.
The match between Harman and Bowers had everything a fan could ask for. Hard shots, well-placed shots and long volleys. These two senior veterans, who played in the same winter league at the YMCA, carried plans onto the court and went to work executing them.
When Bowers charged the net and swatted a shot down the side, all Harman could do was watch. "Way to get up, that was awesome," Harman told Bowers.
Likewise, after watching more than one tough shot by Harman, Bowers would say, "Nice shot, Craig."
And when a shot went awry, you would hear exasperation. You would hear Harman disgustedly ask himself, "What are you doing, Craig?" You would hear Bowers chastise himself with a "You have to get that over the net."
The longer the match went, the louder the grunts with each forehand, the groans with each backhand. Finally, after Bowers returned four or five brilliant consecutive shots at the net, he gained momentum and finished Harman off.
"That was just a good tennis match," Warsaw coach Andy Lewis said. "Craig found his weakness and exploited it. It was the drop shot to his backhand. But it was a little too late."
And Harman?
"Craig wasn't patient enough at times on his ground stroke," Lewis said.
Warsaw's other two singles players, Ryan Van Puffelen and Peter Anders, played similar matches. Both started slow and lost their opening sets. Both finished strong and rolled to wins their last two sets.
Van Puffelen returned from his foot injury that kept him out Tuesday against Wawasee and won 3-6, 6-0, 6-2. Anders stayed undefeated with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 win.
"Our two and three singles came in flat, but they came back and controlled the match the rest of the way," Lewis said. "Ryan moved well. I didn't see him favoring his foot at all. Once he lost that first set, he went into another gear."
Coming in, Lewis predicted his doubles teams would win easily. He was on the money.
Warsaw's No. 1 doubles team of Dan Benyousky and Owen Compton beat James Allen and Chet Walters 6-2, 6-2. And for the second match in a row, Warsaw sophomores Eric Grossnickle and Matt Krizmanich beat two seniors, Shawn Hoover and Bobby Brown, 6-0, 6-1.
"Our doubles teams pretty much cruised, which is what we expected to do," Lewis said.
Lewis also predicted Harman would have a big-time challenge, and he was right there, too. Harman's loss was the first loss by a Warsaw singles player in the last six matches.
"This was as good a way as any to end the streak," Lewis said. "I'd rather have it end in a match like this now rather than later on."
After the match, the players huddled around Lewis on the court as he talked to them for several minutes. Yeah, it was a win, but Lewis saw room for improvement.
"Even though we lost only one singles match, I'm still a little disappointed," Lewis said. "Yeah, it's because of the standards we have set for this season. We've put the benchmark up high for our expectations. This is my best team in my four years here. We've raised the bar.
"We're 3-0 in the conference. Now we have three more conference matches three straight days next week, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday."
Warsaw hosts Concord at 4:30 p.m. Monday. The junior varsity Tigers host a tournament at 9 a.m. Saturday.
WARSAW 4, NORTHWOOD 1
Singles
No. 1 - Eric Bowers (N) def. Craig Harman 6-4, 7-6 (7-5)
No. 2 - Ryan Van Puffelen (W) def. Peter Metz 3-6, 6-0, 6-2
No. 3 - Peter Anders (W) def. Blaine Beehler 4-6, 6-2, 6-2
Doubles
No. 1- Dan Benyousky/Owen Compton (W) def. James Allen/Chet Walters 6-2, 6-2
No. 2 - Eric Grossnickle/Matt Krizmanich (W) def. Shawn Hoover/Bobby Brown 6-0, 6-1
JV: WARSAW 4, NORTHWOOD 1
Singles
No. 1 - Walt Fales (N) def. Pete Hake 8-6
No. 2 - Ryan Kreager (W) def. Grett Tompos 8-1
No. 3 - Ryan Dill (W) def. Anthony McClung 8-5
Doubles
No. 1 - Eric Keller/David Honneffer (W) def. Brad Patches/Matt Sitek 8-4
No. 2 - Travis Yoder/Rob Tidmore (W) def. Nick Abel/Sean Clem 8-2 [[In-content Ad]]
For the better part of two hours, Craig Harman and Eric Bowers talked to themselves, the frustration evident in their voices.
They complimented each other.
And two hours later, when their tennis match ended, they shook hands at the net.
It wasn't so much a tennis match as a tennis battle. Bowers, whose gray T-shirt was soaked with sweat on the front and back, held off Harman 6-4, 7-6 (7-5).
NorthWood won this battle, but Warsaw won the war. The Tigers won their seventh straight match with an important 4-1 Thursday Northern Lakes Conference win over the Panthers. Warsaw improved to 8-1 overall and 3-0 in the NLC, while NorthWood fell to 8-2 and 2-2 in the NLC.
The match between Harman and Bowers had everything a fan could ask for. Hard shots, well-placed shots and long volleys. These two senior veterans, who played in the same winter league at the YMCA, carried plans onto the court and went to work executing them.
When Bowers charged the net and swatted a shot down the side, all Harman could do was watch. "Way to get up, that was awesome," Harman told Bowers.
Likewise, after watching more than one tough shot by Harman, Bowers would say, "Nice shot, Craig."
And when a shot went awry, you would hear exasperation. You would hear Harman disgustedly ask himself, "What are you doing, Craig?" You would hear Bowers chastise himself with a "You have to get that over the net."
The longer the match went, the louder the grunts with each forehand, the groans with each backhand. Finally, after Bowers returned four or five brilliant consecutive shots at the net, he gained momentum and finished Harman off.
"That was just a good tennis match," Warsaw coach Andy Lewis said. "Craig found his weakness and exploited it. It was the drop shot to his backhand. But it was a little too late."
And Harman?
"Craig wasn't patient enough at times on his ground stroke," Lewis said.
Warsaw's other two singles players, Ryan Van Puffelen and Peter Anders, played similar matches. Both started slow and lost their opening sets. Both finished strong and rolled to wins their last two sets.
Van Puffelen returned from his foot injury that kept him out Tuesday against Wawasee and won 3-6, 6-0, 6-2. Anders stayed undefeated with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 win.
"Our two and three singles came in flat, but they came back and controlled the match the rest of the way," Lewis said. "Ryan moved well. I didn't see him favoring his foot at all. Once he lost that first set, he went into another gear."
Coming in, Lewis predicted his doubles teams would win easily. He was on the money.
Warsaw's No. 1 doubles team of Dan Benyousky and Owen Compton beat James Allen and Chet Walters 6-2, 6-2. And for the second match in a row, Warsaw sophomores Eric Grossnickle and Matt Krizmanich beat two seniors, Shawn Hoover and Bobby Brown, 6-0, 6-1.
"Our doubles teams pretty much cruised, which is what we expected to do," Lewis said.
Lewis also predicted Harman would have a big-time challenge, and he was right there, too. Harman's loss was the first loss by a Warsaw singles player in the last six matches.
"This was as good a way as any to end the streak," Lewis said. "I'd rather have it end in a match like this now rather than later on."
After the match, the players huddled around Lewis on the court as he talked to them for several minutes. Yeah, it was a win, but Lewis saw room for improvement.
"Even though we lost only one singles match, I'm still a little disappointed," Lewis said. "Yeah, it's because of the standards we have set for this season. We've put the benchmark up high for our expectations. This is my best team in my four years here. We've raised the bar.
"We're 3-0 in the conference. Now we have three more conference matches three straight days next week, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday."
Warsaw hosts Concord at 4:30 p.m. Monday. The junior varsity Tigers host a tournament at 9 a.m. Saturday.
WARSAW 4, NORTHWOOD 1
Singles
No. 1 - Eric Bowers (N) def. Craig Harman 6-4, 7-6 (7-5)
No. 2 - Ryan Van Puffelen (W) def. Peter Metz 3-6, 6-0, 6-2
No. 3 - Peter Anders (W) def. Blaine Beehler 4-6, 6-2, 6-2
Doubles
No. 1- Dan Benyousky/Owen Compton (W) def. James Allen/Chet Walters 6-2, 6-2
No. 2 - Eric Grossnickle/Matt Krizmanich (W) def. Shawn Hoover/Bobby Brown 6-0, 6-1
JV: WARSAW 4, NORTHWOOD 1
Singles
No. 1 - Walt Fales (N) def. Pete Hake 8-6
No. 2 - Ryan Kreager (W) def. Grett Tompos 8-1
No. 3 - Ryan Dill (W) def. Anthony McClung 8-5
Doubles
No. 1 - Eric Keller/David Honneffer (W) def. Brad Patches/Matt Sitek 8-4
No. 2 - Travis Yoder/Rob Tidmore (W) def. Nick Abel/Sean Clem 8-2 [[In-content Ad]]