GREENCASTLE – Rocky Li understood the stakes more than anyone Saturday night.
With the memory of last year’s team regional letdown on his mind, and unbeaten top-ranked Carmel’s return to boys tennis dominance in his hands, Li zeroed in, as the Greyhounds clung to a 2-1 lead.
On the neighboring court, Columbus North’s senior duo challenged relentlessly at one doubles, magnifying Li’s match result during the IHSAA boys tennis team state championship final inside the DePauw University fieldhouse.
Li never hesitated.
He just kept moving, even with his left wrist noticeably wrapped due to an injury the junior has battled since the season began two months ago.
Situated with match point, Li drifted to the sideline and connected with a swift forehand before gracefully gliding toward the indoor court’s curtain backdrop for a surgical backhand.
Li regained his footing quickly, but Columbus North’s Parth Shah tried to catch him off guard with a soft forehand aimed near the net to keep their match alive. The crowd grew silent. Shah’s putaway attempt fluttered.
Once the ball drew net both Li and the Greyhound faithful standing in the balcony above the courts erupted. Game over. Carmel wins 3-2.
“I was actually the person to lose the final point to Harrison at regional, which put us out of the tournament last year,” Li recalled. “To win this year, and for me to be the last point of it, it really means something to me.”
It meant redemption for Carmel, a weight lifted.
“It hurt a lot last year. It stuck with all of us and going into the offseason, we were just looking forward to the next season. Try to get it back,” Carmel’s Jonathan Yang said. “The whole team, we’ve all been working so hard, so it’s like we’re living a dream.”
After winning the team state title for six consecutive years before last year’s early exit, the months leading up to the program’s 15th state title overall felt like a nightmare for the Greyhounds.
Unable to defend their title in 2022, the Greyhounds had to watch rival North Central win a state-best 21st championship, only a few months after Carmel coach Dan Burnette left the Panthers to take over his hometown Hamilton County program.
“I lost a lot in the finals at North Central. You can’t take anything for granted,” said Brunette, who won three straight boys team titles with the Panthers from 2013-16 and a girls title with Carmel last spring.
“Every day, we were trying to get better. It’s easy to get complacent when you’re undefeated or whatnot, and it’s easy to kind of coast, but we challenged ourselves all the time. That’s what I appreciate about these kids. They can take it. They’ve grown up competing in various things. It’s very competitive here, and you have to earn it at Carmel.”
After vanquishing North Central during the state quarterfinals, 4-1, on their home courts Friday, the Greyhounds (27-0) and the remaining final four teams faced an unpredictable second day due to rain and wet court conditions.
The state semifinals and finals were originally scheduled for 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday at North Central, but the elements forced the IHSAA to move up the first-round start time to 11 a.m. before the weather washed out the venue completely.
The tournament site was shifted to DePauw in Putnam County, approximately 70 miles away, with three matches running nearly one after another beginning in the early afternoon.
“Today was wild. Going from (North Central) at 10 o’clock in the morning to DePauw and sitting here for like six hours, it’s a different kind of toll, but obviously, we came out with the victory, so I think it was all worth it,” Carmel senior Braedon McIntyre said.
Carmel sat idle while second-ranked Columbus North went the distance with No. 13 Jasper in the first semifinal. The Bull Dogs won 3-2 with three matches going three sets, including two via tiebreakers.
The Greyhounds began their semifinal match with No. 6 Culver Academy roughly three hours after their expected start time and seven hours after gathering at the Carmel tennis house that morning.
“Delay after delay. We’re out at North Central, then we’re going to Carmel, then we’re going all over the place,” Li said. “I decided I just needed to focus on my tennis and put away these outside distractions that I couldn’t control. That’s when I zoned out and never thought about them again.”
Instead, the Greyhounds used the time to bond even more, and they ran through Culver Academy, 4-1, to reach the championship final.
“We played 19 out of the top 30 teams in the regular season, and we played everybody we drew from the quarterfinals on,” Brunette said. “We made a commitment to get as many good regular-season matches as possible, and I think that paid off.”
Once the finals started at 6:15 p.m., Carmel fired in unison, taking the first point a 6-0, 6-2 win at three singles by sophomore Wesley Worobel.
Columbus North tied the match 1-1 at one singles, as Hank Lin beat Yang, 6-0, 6-1. Carmel’s freshmen two doubles team of David Liu and Grant Mu locked down the second point in straight sets, 6-2, 6-1.
Everything came down to either one doubles or Li.
“Ever since last year, I’ve pictured in my head the moment we lift up the state trophy as a senior, and it feels good to end it on a high note,” said Yang, who was named Mental Attitude Award winner. “Winning any year is amazing, but winning as a senior feels special.”
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana high school boys tennis: Carmel beats Columbus north for title
