The 2008 season starts Monday, February 25th.

Athletes must have a current physical on file

or bring one to the first practice.

2008 Schedule

Tennis Court Map

Sports at Lab Blog

BOYS VARSITY TENNIS 2008:

MAY 23-23: STATE TOURNAMENT:

We had a good showing at state. Our second doubles team, Mark Wittels and Bill Stueben had a tough draw and lost to Sumit Jain & Jason Rizvi from Sandburg, 1-6, 4-6 in their first match. In their second match Bill and Mark lost to Mark Sansait & Joe Kim from Rolling Meadows, 1-6, 0-6.

Sandy Carton and Evan Levin were 2-2 and had a very good state tournament. They lost a close three-set match in the first round to Lockport, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3. Sandy and Evan struggled in this first match and were clearly not yet playing their best tennis. But they righted the ship in the second match and won in straight sets against Metamora, 6-3, 6-1. Their third match was also a three setter, and Evan and Sandy dropped the first set and were down a break in the second before coming back to win in three against Mr. Prospect, 6-3, 7-3, 6-1. The fourth match of the day was well played by both teams and was probably Sandy and Evan?s best performance of the tournament. Unfortunately, they came out on the short end and lost to Ben Lantz & Pierce Torrence, Rockford (Auburn), 5-7, 3-6.

Tyler Anderson, the only freshman on the team and playing in his first state tournament, had a very good showing. He won his first main draw match against Jon Donnowitz of Gurnee (Warren), 6-1, 6-1. His second match was against Jimmy Li, Wheaton (W. Warrenville South) and Tyle continued to play well but still lost in straight sets, 6-2, 6-2. Tyler?s third match was a battle of wills and an endurance contest. Tyler prevailed over Morrie Bossen of Chicago (Payton) 6-2, 5-7, 5-1 (ret). Tyler?s last match was against James Stathis, Belleville (West). The whole U-High team was there to watch the end of Tyler?s match as he fought well but ended up losing in two sets, 3-6, 3-6.

Well done Tyler, Bill, Evan, Mark, and Sandy!

MAY 16-17: SECTIONALS: We finished second. Five players are State Qualifiers: Sandy Carton, Evan Levin, Bill Stueben, Mark Wittels, and Tyler Anderson.

We had a very good state sectional tournament, and came close to winning it before falling a few points short. We had two seeded doubles teams and one seeded singles player and a good draw. Unfortunately, Frank Firke had a tough draw his first round and played the number two seed, Kris Powell from DeLaSalle. Frank lost 0-6, 1-6. Tyler Anderson defeated Sasanka Kalari from Morgan Park Academy, 6-0, 6-0 in his first match and then beat Charles Hruska from Mt. Carmel, 6-0, 6-0 in his second match.

Both our doubles teams had a good first day and each won both their matches. Sandy Carton and Evan Levin had a bye the first round and won their second match easily, defeating Asplin and Lau from Payton, 6-0, 6-0. Bill and Mark first defeated Dremonas and Elliot (Mt. Carmel), 6-1, 6-0, and then defeated the Jones Prep team, 6-1, 6-1.

On Saturday morning the semifinal and final matches were scheduled to be played. Our first doubles faced Lee and Walther (DeLaSalle) in one semifinal of the doubles, and our second doubles team faced Ing and Horwich (Payton) in the other semifinal. The prospect of an all U-High doubles final was tantalizing, and it motivated both U-High teams to play well. Sandy and Evan won their match easily in straight sets, 6-0, 6-1. Bill and Mark had a tougher time of it, but they came through in the end with a thrilling three set victory over Payton?s Ing and Horwich, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4. In the doubles final Sandy and Evan defeated Mark and Bill in a seesaw affair, 6-4, 6-2. Congratulations to sectional doubles champions Sandy Carton and Evan Levin and runners-up Bill Stueben and Mark Wittels!

Tyler Anderson played his single semifinal against number one seed, Matt Goralka from Payton Prep. Tyler played well but succumbed to Goralka, 1-6, 3-6. In the third place match Tyler played Kris Powell from DeLaSalle. Powell has a strong all court game and he overpowered Tyler with his heavy serve and powerful ground strokes. Tyler lost 1-6, 2-6 and finished in fourth place. But Tyler too is a state qualifier and can look forward to competing at state next week.

MAY 10: ISL TOURNAMENT. We finished fourth.

Latin won the tournament and the ISL championship, Lake Forest Academy was second, and North Shore Country Day was third. The weather was ideal. Tyler Anderson finished in 6th place at one singles; Frank Firke finished in 5th place at second singles; and Alex Hsu and Jim Eichholz finished fifth at third doubles.

Bill Stueben and Mark Wittels played well and had a good tournament, finishing in third place at second doubles. First doubles, Sandy Carton and Evan Levin, struggled to find their best form. After winning their first match easily against Elgin Academy, they lost the semifinal to Lake Forest Academy, 5-7, 3-6. Evan and Sandy finished in fourth place.

MAY 7: ST. IGNATIUS: L 1-4

Ignatius has a solid team. We lost both singles matches and second and third doubles. First doubles, Sandy and Evan, won in straight sets.

MAY 6: MORGAN PARK ACADEMY: W 5-0

MAY 2-3: MOLINE TOURNAMENT

The tournament was shortened because of rain on the second day, but we managed to play three rounds on the first day. With no one seeded, we had an uphill struggle. Tyler Anderson was 1-2 at first singles; Frank Firke was 1-2 at second singles; Sandy Carton and Bill Stueben were 1-2 a first doubles, and Mark Wittels and Ian Simpson were 1-2 at second doubles.

APRIL 3O: PAYTON PREP: W 4-1

Tyler Anderson played a very solid match against Payton's Matt Goralka. Tyler broke Goralka's serve several times in the first set, only to get broken back himself. Goralka went on to win 7-5, 6-1. U-High's second singles, Frank Firke, had the longest match of the day, and won in three sets, 6-7, 6-3, 6-1. Frank has also established three new U-High tennis season records: the most diving saves, the most abrasions, and the most bandages-required-per-match.

Third doubles, Jim Eichholz and Alex Hsu, had a long two set match and emerged the winners with a 6-2, 7-6 victory. At second doubles Mark Wittels and Bill Stueben played quickly and efficiently and won in straight sets, 6-1, 6-0. First doubles also won in straight sets, but the victory was hard fought and by no means easy. Sandy and Evan were up a break twice in the first set, lost their own serves twice, and finally prevailed 7-5. The second set was almost a carbon copy of the first and ended with an identical score, 7-5.

APRIL 25: PARKER: W 5-0

This was one of the windiest days in recent memory with huge gusts playing havoc with the tennis ball. Standard coaching advice for such conditions is always: move your feet, and shorten and simplify your strokes. As a team we were able to do this successfully and as a result we won every match. Frank Firke was in his element in this sort of match and was able to let the wind push the ball around and then befuddle his opponent with his superior athleticism. Frank won 6-3, 6-1. Bill Stueben and Mark Wittels also won handily at second doubles with a 6-3, 6-1 victory. U-High's third doubles, Andrew Hsu and Jim Eichholz, took three sets but also came away with a victory, 2-6, 6-2, 6-3. Tyler Anderson played a very solid match at first singles and seemed to be hitting the ball as if there were no wind. Tyler won 7-5, 6-2.

First doubles played a very capable Parker pair and had a long three set match. Evan and Sandy struggled to adjust to the wind in the first set and dropped it 4-6. Though down a break early in the second set they were able to gradually make adjustments and even the match with a 6-3 second set win. In the third set they got ahead early and stayed in control and finished off the match, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1. Sandy and Evan again demonstrated why they have had such a good season with their poise and ability to adjust to their opponents.

APRIL 23: FENWICK: L 1-4

A perfect day for tennis. Fenwick is always a competitive team, and we had some very close three setters this time around that made the difference. Sandy and Evan won a very close match at first doubles, winning both sets in tiebreaks, 7-6, (7-5), 7-6 (10-8). They were down 2-5 in the first set and came back to win it. The Fenwick coach said it best when he praised them as a "disciplined team that plays well under pressure." Bill Stueben and Mark Wittels lost a close three set match at second doubles, 6-2, 1-6, 5-7. It was a great effort that just fell a bit short. At one singles, Tyler Anderson also lost in three very tight sets. Tyler was in excellent form but lost the third set tiebreak and went down 2-6, 6-4, 6-7 (2-7). Other matches: Frank Firke lost at second singles, 1-6, 5-7 and Alex Hsu and Ian Simpson lost at third doubles, 4-6, 0-6.

APRIL 22: ELGIN ADACEMY: L 2-3

A close match but we came out on the losing end. Tyler Anderson struggled at one singles and lost, 2-6, 3-6 and Frank Firke lost at second singles, 1-6, 1-6. Bill Stueben and Mark Wittels won handily at second doubles, 6-2, 6-2, and Sandy Carton and Evan Levin continued their strong play at first doubles with a straight sets win, 6-2, 6-1. The deciding match was the third doubles match between Moller and Roppola from Elgin Academy and U-High's Alex Hsu and Jim Eichholz. Alex and Jim took the first set 6-2, and were a break up in the second. This set was a seesaw affair and proved decisive. Three U-High break points at 5-5 went astray, and despite saving several sets points against serve, Alex and Jim dropped the set 5-7. Elgin then carried its momentum into the third set and finished it off 6-1 to give them the victory.

APRIL 15: WHITNEY YOUNG: L 2-3: We did not play our best during this match and the very blustery wind clearly was a factor. That said, Whitney Young has two strong singles players and they handily won both the first and second singles matches against us, defeating Tyler Anderson 7-6 (7-2), 6-1 and Frank Firke, 6-2, 6-1. Second doubles, Bill Stueben and Mark Wittels, played a close three set match but lost 5-7, 6-2, 5-7. First doubles, Sandy and Evan, won easily in straight sets, 6-2, 6-2. Third doubles also won in straight sets. Alex Hsu and Ian Simpson played their first match together and won 6-4, 7-6 (7-2).

APRIL 15: LFA L 1-4: Lake Forest Academy has a strong team and is solid at every position. They defeated us in straight sets at every position except first doubles where we won in three very close sets. Tyler Anderson lost to Andy Duckworth, 1-6, 1-6 at one singles; Ian Simpson lost to Jed Somers at second singles, 2-6, 2-6; and Alex Hsu and Andrew Sylora lost at third doubles, 1-6, 3-6. Mark Wittels and Bill Stueben played a good match and lost a close two-set match at second doubles, 6-7, 4-6.

The best match of the day, and our only win, was the first doubles contest between our own Evan Levin and Sandy Carton and Toby and Henry Davis from LFA. The wind was very blustery and unpredictable, but this match was played at a high level throughout. Evan and Sandy lost the first set 2-6, but came back strongly to take the second by the same score. They got up an early break in the third, lost it, and then battled toe-to-toe with the LFA pair the rest of the third set. Twice Sandy and Evan had to hold serve to keep the set going to a tiebreak, and twice they did so successfully. In the tiebreak both Sandy and Evan had match points against their serve and again came up big. On their third match point Evan put away a floater to take the third set at 10-8. Sandy and Evan deserve a lot of credit for keeping their cool under pressure and earning themselves a big win.

APRIL 5: EVANSTON TOURNAMENT: We played some good matches but finished out of the running and well behind Latin and Loyola, the dominant teams at the tournament. Tyler lost an exhausting two and a half hour opening match to Choinski from Argo, 6-4, 6-7 (4), 2-6. But Tyler recovered nicely and won his next two matches, recording a 6-0, 6-2 over Whitney Young and a 6-0, 6-2 win over Shephard. Tyler finished in 5th place at first singles.

Sandy Carton and Evan Levin won their first round match against Argo, 6-4, 6-3, lost their second match to Latin's Williams and Prescott, 3-6, 1-6, and lost their third match to Evanston in three sets, 6-3, 2-6, 2-6. Sandy and Evan finished in fourth place at first doubles. Frank Firke lost his first round match, 3-6, 3-6, lost his second, 2-6, 2-6, and won his third match, 6-4, 6-3. Frank finished in seventh place at second singles. Bill Stueben and Mark Wittels lost their first round match to Argo, 6-0, 0-6, 1-6; won their second match against Shepard 6-2, 6-0; and won their third match against St. Ignatius, 1-6, 6-2, 6-4 to finish in fifth place at second doubles.

APRIL 4: LATIN: L 0-5. Latin was too strong for us across the board and beat us at every position in straight sets. Tyler Anderson put up a good fight and played well against the always tough Michael Jacobson, losing 2-6, 1-6. Sandy Carton and Evan Levin also played well in their straight set loss to McAnulty and Quazzo, 4-6, 1-6. Other results: Frank Firke lost at second singles, 3-6, 3-6; Bill Stueben and Maark Wittels lost to Latin's strong doubles pair, Williams and Prescott, 1-6, 1-6; and Alex Hsu and Andrew Sylora lost to Latin's third doubles, 0-6, 2-6.

APRIL 1: SANDBURG: W 3-2. Freshman Tyler Anderson easily won his first official U-high match, 6-0, 6-0. Senior Sandy Carton and Sophomore Evan Levin also notched their first victory of the season with a straight sets 6-4, 6-2 win over a good Sandburg pair, Jain and Rizvi. Senior Frank Firke won the third and decisive point at second singles with his straight sets victory, 6-2, 6-4. Second doubles, Bill Stueben and Alex Hsu, lost 1-6, 2-6, and third doubles, Mark Wittels and Andrew Sylora, lost, 1-6, 4-6 to complete the scoring.

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BOYS JV TENNIS 2008:

SEASON: 4-3

ISL: 3-1

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APRIL 25: Parker W 4-1

APRIL 22: Fenwick L 2-3

APRIL 22: Elgin W 3-2

APRIL 16: Whitney Young W 5-0:

APRIL 15: LFA L 2-3:

APRIL 4: Latin W 3-2:

APRIL 1: Sandburg L 1-4: