Washington Evening Journal
111 North Marion Avenue
Washington, IA 52353
319-653-2191
Tennis returns with a bang
Andy Krutsinger
Mar. 31, 2021 1:00 am
FAIRFIELD - There was a bit of a racket at the Punj Tennis Center in Fairfield on Tuesday, as the courts finally saw the return of high school tennis. Mt. Pleasant visited Maharishi for the season-opening boys meet, one Maharishi took 5-4.
It was a special night for the Maharishi squad, which had double the wait of the rest of the area's teams. While all Iowa high school tennis teams had to sit out last year, Maharishi hadn't played since 2018, as low numbers sat the Pioneers out of the 2019 season.
The meet had plenty of fireworks. Three of the six singles matches went to a 10-point tiebreaker, and two of the three doubles matches went right down to the wire.
'It's absolutely great that they had these close matches today,” Maharhisi head coach Steve Briggs said. 'Some of these guys have never played in a varsity match before.”
The meet came down to the very final match. After Maharishi took four of the six singles matches to go into doubles up 4-2, Mt. Pleasant tied it up by securing a pair of doubles wins. Mt. Pleasant's Levi Graber and Brian Huynh defeated Maharishi's Dominic Dufaux and William Nguyan 8-1 in the No. 3 doubles match, and Mt. Pleasant's Owen Vansickel and Lincoln Henriksen won the No. 2 doubles match over Maharishi's Romil Patel aand Jayonta Wegman, 9-7.
That meant the only court left playing was No. 1 doubles, and that matchup was a true nail-biter. The final game of the night went all the way down to the tiebreaker, where Maharishi's Budhil Thijm and James Nguyen escaped Mt. Pleasant's David Nguyen and Jack Schimmelpfennig 9-8.
'It's a different experience for us because in the past our teams have been more dominant,” said Briggs. 'We've only been practicing for two weeks, but they showed they were focused and that they have enough confidence to finish.”
Briggs also mentioned his relationship with the Mt. Pleasant team.
'I know these guys very well from Mt. Pleasant,” Briggs said. 'They're all really nice guys and the coach is a good friend.”
In the singles matches, Mahrishi picked up wins from Romil Patel in the No. 1 game, Thijm in the No. 2 game, James Nguyen in the No. 3 game, and Dufaux in the No. 4 matchup. Mt. Pleasant picked up a win from Graber in the No. 4 match and Huynh in the No. 6 match.
Panther head coach Tyler Rodgers said he was glad to see his team battle with Maharishi, which has been a perennial power on the area's tennis scene.
'It's good to get the jitters out now,” Rodgers said. 'Maharishi is always a good team and well coached, so to play them 5-4 is not a bad thing.”
And although the matchup itself was plenty to get excited about, there was joy in the air at the site of a high school tennis meet taking place after years of absence.
'It's a lot more enjoyable playing than not playing, I'll tell you that,” Rodgers said.
Maharishi's James Nguyen rushes to the net during his singles game against Mt. Pleasant's Owen Vansickel on Tuesday. (Andy Krutsinger/The Union)
Mt. Pleasant's Jack Schimmelpfennig sets up his serve in the No. 2 singles match on Tuesday at Maharishi. (Andy Krutsinger/The Union)
Mt. Pleasant's David Nguyen returns a ball during the Panthers' road loss at Maharishi on Tuesday. (Andy Krutsinger/The Union)
Maharishi's Romil Patel watches the ball into the racket in Tuesday's boys tennis match against Mt. Pleasant. (Andy Krutsinger/The Union)