L-P, Mendota doubles pairs win first round matches at state tennis

LaSalle’s Joe Pohar returns the ball during a IHSA 1A boys double tennis match Thursday, May 26, 2022, at Midtown Athletic Club in Palatine.

The La Salle-Peru duo of Joe Pohar and Andrew Bollis had successful first day at the IHSA State Class 1A Boys Tennis Tournament on Thursday as they were able to defeat Aurora Central Catholic’s Justin Cebulski and Bryan Novak 6-2, 6-2 in Palatine.

“We knew we were going to face good competition up here and they were a good team,” Pohar said. “We played great together and we are happy to move on.”

Bollis said his experience this season was different than last year’s trip to state.

“I was lucky enough to get here last year and we got smashed two straight matches,” Bollis said. “But this year, even though we came in as an unranked team, we got a good draw. When we heard who we had, coach scouted them a bit and we felt we had a chance to win. I was glad to get a win here and we had to play our best to get it.”

The Cavalier duo wasn’t the only area pair to win Thursday as Mendota’s Logan Brandner and Andrew Stamberger outlasted Grayslake North’s Varun Gullapalli and Jacob Marshall 3-6, 6-2, 10-4, while Princeton’s Tyson Phillips lost 6-0, 6-0 to Benet Academy’s Zach Bobofchak.

Bollis and Pohar dominated their match, and both had great shots as was displayed on the final point when Pohar made a return of a serve that forced his opponent to a bad angle on the baseline and Bollis rushed the net anticipating a lob, which he got and he smashed it home to punch the Cavs’ ticket to the next round.

“They really played well other than a couple of tough moments,” L-P coach Aaron Guenther said. “They were all over it today. We talked about this early on how Andrew got to state last year in the doubles and Joe was a good singles player but we felt their best chance to get to state was as a doubles team and they really embraced it and really worked hard for it and now it is paying off.”

Pohar agreed with his coach.

“We felt this was the best way for us and all the time we spent together practicing, we have become good friends as well,” Pohar said. “We like to do things together off the court too.”

Bollis said time spent off the court helped the pair’s chemistry on the court.

“We go fishing and hang out together and I think that helps us on the court,” Bollis said. “If you make a mistake, you know the other guy has your back and knows that you are trying your hardest, not just for a teammate but also for a friend.”

In the second round, Bollis and Pohar will face St. Ignatius duo Liam McConnell and Will McHugh, a No. 9-16 seed, at Rolling Meadows, while Brandner and Stamberger will face top seed Max and James Braun, of Champaign Centennial, at Palatine.

Phillips will play Beecher’s Zack Johnson in the first round of the consolation bracket at Wheeling.