Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
SOUTH WHITLEY - The Tippecanoe Valley Viking tennis team beat Whitko 3-2 Tuesday, setting up Thursday's TRC showdown with Manchester.
Valley overpowered Whitko in the No. 1 singles and both doubles matches. Valley No. 1 singles player Eric Love used his hard serve to take control in his match, and he manhandled Nate Allen 6-3, 6-1.
"If Eric's serve is going in, he has a good bite on the serve and a pretty good kick on it," Valley coach Rod Hamman said. "It will drive guys off the court. If his serve is on, it sets up the rest of his game. It gives him confidence in his stroking, too."
Mike Parker and JayDee Parker, Valley's No. 2 doubles team, did what they always do - win. They remained undefeated on the season with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Evan Weybright and Nick Hamill.
"I believe their record is 10-0," Hamman said. "I think our doubles have been our strongpoint this season, along with our No. 1 singles. They have a lot of mental strength as well as physical strength, and that's pulled them through a lot of matches."
Hamman said the fact that the Parker boys know each other so well is what makes them tough to beat.
"For the most part, I think they're comfortable being at the net," Hamman said. "JayDee is kind of a towering figure up there for a No. 2 doubles player. He's aggressive up there, too, and I think that intimidates the other teams. Mike is probably more of a finesse player, but when he does get up to the net, he does something with the ball. He's not afraid to pound the ball. He will take it to guys.
"I think it helps that they have a good relationship with one another as far as being cousins. They know how to relate to one another off the court, and that helps them."
Valley's No.1 doubles team of Matt Craig and Brandon Holloway toyed with Barry Weybright and Cory Sleighter, winning 6-2, 6-1.
Whitko's 2-10 team played like its record, making several unforced errors. Taking advantage of them was the key, Hamman said.
"That's one thing we try to tell the guys," Hamman said. "If we can keep it in play, usually the team that makes more mistakes will usually be the team that ends up on the short end of the stick. In doubles, we try to focus on getting the good angles. In singles, we work on trying to move the guy around, keeping it in play. Try to find his weaknesses, and try to attack them."
The win improves Valley's record to 6-1 overall and 2-0 in the TRC. The Vikings host a 4:30 p.m. match with Manchester on Thursday. The Squires are 4-6 overall and 1-0 in the TRC. Only four schools have tennis teams in the conference - Manchester, Rochester, Tippecanoe Valley and Whitko. Valley has already beaten Rochester, so if the Vikings win Thursday, they are the TRC champions.
"I guess you could say this one will be for the conference bragging rights," Hamman said.
"I'm looking forward to it. I think it's going to be a real close match that will come down to a three-set match somewhere along the way. I think the key for us is to be patient with them as far as keeping the ball in play and yet being aggressive in what they give us. If they give us a good short ball to hit, we need to make a good approach on it, go to the net and be aggressive with it."
VARSITY:
TIPPECANOE VALLEY 3,
WHITKO 2
No. 1 singles - Eric Love (TV) def. Nate Allen 6-3, 6-1
No. 2 singles - Justin Roman (W) def. Marc Ellenwood 6-2, 6-1
No. 3 singles - Brock Rhodes (W) def. Luke Plank 6-1, 6-0
No. 1 doubles - Matt Craig/Brandon Holloway (TV) def. Barry Weybright/Cory Sleighter 6-2, 6-1
No. 2 doubles - Mike Parker/JayDee Parker (TV) def. Nick Hamill/Evan Weybright 6-2, 6-3
JV: VALLEY 3,
WHITKO 2
No. 1 singles - Eric Lee (W) def. Jeremy Shambaugh 8-3
No. 2 singles - Jason Miller (TV) def. Nathan Haywood 8-2
No. 3 singles - Matt Reed (W) def. Bryce Gast 8-7 (7-3)
No. 1 doubles - Aaron Hart/Aaron Martin (TV) win by default
No. 2 doubles - Charlie Manns/Grant Gibson (TV) win by default
