Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Warsaw boys tennis coach Andy Lewis was in a Lou Holtz mode Thursday, bragging up (and perhaps overestimating) the competition while fretting about his team.
"We're 3-1, but we could be 0-4 with the teams we've played," Lewis said. "Elkhart Central, Mishawaka Marian, Penn and now Fort Wayne Northrop - all of those are good tennis schools."
For the record, only one, Mishawaka Marian, is ranked. Mishawaka Marian, tied with Goshen at No. 15 in the latest poll, handed Warsaw its lone loss in what Lewis calls "our growing up match." He calls it that because Marian, a team with six seniors, schooled Warsaw. For the record, Warsaw found itself not 0-4 but 3-1 after beating 1-2 Fort Wayne Northrop 5-0 in Wednesday's home match.
In Warsaw's singles matches against Northrop, No. 1 Dan Benyousky beat Eric Derheimer 6-1, 6-3; No. 2 Matt Krizmanich beat Paul Musson 7-6 (7-2), 6-1; No. 3 Steve Slaughter beat Kaki Janek 6-3, 6-3.
In doubles matches, Brad Simmons and Eric Grossnickle beat Jonathan Weber and Rhett Plotner 6-0, 6-1 in the No. 1 match; David Honneffer and Travis Yoder beat Major Shear and Curtis Gratz 6-0, 2-6, 6-1 in the No. 2 doubles match.
If anybody on Warsaw's team had reason to be in the "Lou Holtz woe-is-me mode" it was not Lewis but Benyousky.
Of the players on Warsaw's roster, only Benyousky beat Lewis this summer. But Benyousky, whom Lewis touted during the preseason, toted an 0-3 record into Wednesday's match.
Was Benyousky's win over Lewis a fluke? Did Lewis not know what he's talking about? Hardly. In those three matches, Benyousky clashed with two of the top players in the state, Penn's Troy Havens and Mishawaka Marian's Aaron Scherb. He lost to his Elkhart Central opponent in three sets.
When Benyousky took care of Northrop's Derheimer, he beat an opponent who has played varsity tennis for four years, including the last two years at No. 1 singles.
"I've played good people," Benyousky said. "(Havens) was difficult because he is one of the best in the state, but he helped me elevate my game."
Benyousky, asked if his toughest stretch of regular-season opponents is over, hesitated then said, "I think the toughest part is over, but I still have a tough road ahead. I am pretty confident now."
Derheimer had no answer for Benyousky's approach shot. If Benyousky got anywhere close to the net, he won the point.
"In the first set, I was serving pretty good and had a good approach," Benyousky said. "The whole match, I think he won only about two points when I came in."
Said Lewis: "Dan Benyousky played really well. We've been working on approach shots with him, following his shot and finishing approach shots.
"A couple of points I thought Dan was out, but he would get the tip of his racket on it and muscle it over."
Krizmanich, who battled in his first set then cruised in his second set, did not muscle out a win over his opponent but instead broke his spirit.
"At 3-1, Matt had a wonderful volley to make it 4-1," Lewis said. "You could just see the wind go out of the sails of his opponent."
Warsaw's pre-Northern Lakes Conference schedule ends as the Tigers open NLC play at 4:30 this afternoon at Plymouth.
Lewis, happy to be anything but 0-4, wondered what it would be like to go into the NLC schedule 4-0.
"If we would ever go 4-0 to start the season," he said, "then everybody had better watch out."
WARSAW 5, FORT WAYNE NORTHROP 0
Singles
No. 1 - Dan Benyousky def. Eric Derheimer 6-1, 6-3
No. 2 -ÊMatt Krizmanich def. Paul Musson 7-6 (7-2), 6-1
No. 3 -ÊSteve Slaughter def. Kaki Janek 6-3, 6-3
Doubles
No. 1 - Brad Simmons/Eric Grossnickle def. Jonathan Weber/Rhett Plotner 6-0, 6-1
No. 2 -ÊDavid Honneffer/Travis Yoder def. Major Shear/Curtis Gratz 6-0, 2-6, 6-1
Records -ÊWarsaw 3-1, Fort Wayne Northrop 1-2
JV: WARSAW 3, FORT WAYNE NORTHROP 2
Singles
No. 1 -ÊBrandon Wills (FWN) def. Ryan Dill 8-6
No. 2 - Jason Ladd (W) def. Jared Laughlin 8-2
No. 3 -ÊLuke Polisiakiewcz (FWN) def. Kenneth Honneffer 8-5
No. 4 - Brandon Conley (W) def. Conor Slocum 8-2
Doubles
No. 1 - Colin Nicols/Adam Richardson (W) def. Todd Welch/Joe White 8-0, 8-1
Records - Warsaw 2-2, Fort Wayne Northrop N/A
