Batavia sophomore Josh Cogan has played 32 matches this season without losing a single set, let alone a match.
That almost certainly will change at some point during the next three days, but Cogan figures to inflict plenty of damage before that sterling record is dented. The IHSA Boys Tennis State Tournament begins today and continues Friday and Saturday at sites throughout the northwest suburbs.
“You try not to think about it too much,” Cogan said of his perfect record. “You don’t want to let it get to your head. I take every match like it’s a new match, as if I were 0-0. So I take every match pretty much the same, try to be really focused.”
Cogan’s credentials earned him a 9-16 seeding in singles in a state tournament field loaded with elite players. He was unseeded at state as a freshman last year.
Fresh off a sectional championship at last week’s West Aurora Sectional, Cogan is trying to avoid setting specific goals – or limitations – for the week.
“I’m really proud of myself but I just got here because I’ve been focused the whole year, practicing really hard, coming out on the court every day trying to do my best and have fun,” Cogan said. “It’s turned out really well so far.”
Cogan opens play at 10 a.m. today at Conant against fellow sophomore Matt Papke of Rockford Guilford.
Batavia coach Bob Kummer said it “would be a dream” if Cogan could advance to the final day on Saturday, noting it has happened only once previously in his long tenure as Bulldogs coach. Kummer said the key for Cogan once he starts running into elite players is to simply maintain a level head, something at which Cogan typically excels.
“He doesn’t have to get a better serve or a better volley or anything like that,” Kummer said. “He just has to be able to keep his composure, keep his sense of purpose and realize he’s pounding the ball a foot away from the baseline and the guys he’s playing with are pounding the ball a foot away from the baseline, too.”
Star power: St. Charles North boasts the area's largest contingent of state qualifiers, with the doubles teams of David Johnson and John Mittvick and Danny Oakes and Parker Featherston, plus singles player Christian Hoskey, all participating.
The doubles teams will likely be relieved to simply see unfriendly competition across the net. In the Lake Park Sectional final on Saturday, the two North teams met in the championship match, with Johnson and Mittvick prevailing over Oakes and Featherston, 6-4, 6-4, for the title.
North coach Sean Masoncup said seeing his teams go at it made for an uneasy viewing experience.
“I think at the start it was weird for them but then once the match got going the competitive juices started going,” Masoncup said. “Me being quiet and not being able to cheer for either one, not being able to coach, was definitely a new experience for me, just having to sit back and enjoy the match.
“They’ve been playing each other all year [in practice] and Parker and Danny have really improved because of David and John.”
Johnson and Mittvick (31-3), in their second year together, received a 5-8 seed and are a serious threat to make it to Saturday. Featherston and Oakes come in seeded 17-32 with a 30-5 mark. Hoskey is unseeded.
Better as a pair: Geneva's Filip Ivkovich and Collin Rapp started the year as the Vikings' top singles players but as the season wore on, Vikings coach Peter Burkhardt envisioned greater postseason success if the two teamed up.
They played doubles together at several of the weekend invitationals, ultimately earning a berth in the state tournament thanks to a third-place showing at the Lake Park Sectional. Burkhardt said Ivkovich, a foreign exchange student from Croatia, might have been able to qualify in singles but he likes the pair’s upside together, even if they don’t have as much doubles experience as many of the others in the field.
“Doubles is something good singles players should be able to learn,” Burkhardt said. “I’ve been working hard on trying to develop these guys. They’re not quite there yet but they’re getting closer every match. I’m hoping this weekend they can be competitive.”
The unseeded duo opens up against Highland Park’s David Zak and Zach Brint today at Fremd.
Representing: Freshman Justin Bowman of St. Charles East is the Saints' lone state qualifier. Bowman will open up against Downers Grove South's Joey Leto today at Rolling Meadows.
St. Francis senior Kyle Dawson, of St. Charles, is seeded 17-32, and starts today against Lake Forest’s Sam Winkler at Schaumburg.
The Marmion doubles team of John Mason and Bubba Weiler take on a pair from Edwardsville at Barrington.