Excitedly leaving school after 7th period on a sunny Thursday afternoon, Jesuit’s top 6 players hopped onto a small white bus and traveled over three hours to Austin, TX where they got to play against some of the top players from schools around the city. As the team arrived, the brisk breeze and the scurrying of many kids, coaches, and parents set the rushed tone for the incredibly intense tournament. When Coach Andy Civello ’97 pulled up to the main site, the tournament director immediately informed him of the varying buses that would transport the doubles and singles to different sites. Hurried, the players boarded their respective buses and quickly arrived at the tournament site. Then, the hushed lull of players anxiously waiting to be called to their courts permeated the ambiance surrounding this highly important tournament that greatly affects the end of season rankings for both regionals and state.
On Friday, February 26th, the first rounds of the tournament commenced, and fortunately, every Jesuit player managed to win easily, breezing through the first round. However, the Jesuit team did not continue without maladies when twin brothers Ethan and Hayden Kissee ’17 both got sick with Ethan Kissee becoming so ill he almost withdrew from the tournament- almost. Deciding to push forward, both brothers picked themselves up and patiently waited around with everyone else for at least another hour and a half to get onto court and play their second matches. All except John Lindberg ’18, whose tournament site immediately placed him on court after his first match, allowing him to keep playing without needing another warm up, helping him net his second win easily, were able to play with the rest of the Ranger team except for Pierre Craig ’16 who fell to an eventual finalist after a hard, ugly set. As the third round approached, sicknesses raged and doubles partners Ethan Kissee ’17 and Matthew Salazar ’16 lost 2-8 in the quarterfinals. Ethan Kissee ’17 went on to say, “We battled through adversity this tournament. I think it really helped us as a team and we will take this momentum into the season” On the bright side, the undefeated doubles team of Hayden Kissee ’17 and Campbell Frost ’16 pulled through and won their third match and similarly, Lindberg easily pulled out a win 8-0 against his opponent. With only three players left in the tournament, Jesuit began to wonder whether or not the Ranger team could pull out two wins.
In the fourth round of the competition, Lindberg and the Dynamic Duo of Frost and Kissee earned easy victories, with Lindberg once again winning 8-0, cementing an impressive streak of winning 32 games in a row! Soon after, the final matches went on, with Jesuit having two different players/teams in two finals. Sadly, John Lindberg lost his finals match in a heart wrenching third set 7-6 (5), 0-6, 6-4, managing to finish in a truly impressive second place finish. On a more positive note, Hayden and Campbell once again clinched a victory, making it their third tournament win in a row! Kissee ’17 stated “The games went great, I felt really good playing and the team really came together and picked each other up.”
The overall impressive finishes of the Ranger team continue to underscore the team’s dominance in tournament play and foreshadow a bright ending to a fantastic season for the Jesuit Tennis Team!
