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Hernando Today

Leopards Rule the Courts

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By TONY CASTRO SPORTS EDITOR Hernando Today

Hernando Today

Published: May 25, 2008

This spring was highlighted by an odd weather pattern that wrought havoc upon the outdoor prep sports scene -- especially tennis. Several matches were canceled or postponed.

Hernando High was particularly affected as the Leopards were limited to seven regular season matches. (Individual schools can participate in a state-maximum 18 matches).

Despite the lack of live competition, the Purple and Gold netters repeated as Hernando County Champions at Delta Woods Park and followed up by capturing the prestigious Class 2A, District 6 title at Zephyrhills' Zephyr Park.

Under first-year Head Coach Don Bruzzi, the Leopards narrowly missed advancing to the coveted 2A State Championship Finals as a team to Casselberry.

Bruzzi's netters downed Inverness-Citrus High in the 2A-III regional semifinal, 5-2, before being eliminated in the regional finals by Lecanto High, 4-3.

If losing to the Panthers was not painful enough, HHS sent its entire squad to the State Finals to help support its top player, sophomore Chris Nyholm.

Nyholm, however, never stepped on the courts. He and his teammates arrived late and as a result, he defaulted to Live Oak-Suwannee's John Boatright.

Nyholm, who came into the match 13-1 overall, had drawn what many observers believed as a favorable state seeding. He was expected to reach at least the state semifinals.

But due to the tardiness, the odd season concluded in well -- an odd way.

Regardless of how it all panned out, area coaches and the Hernando Today staff rewarded the Leopards' 6-3 campaign with five all-star selections to the annual All-Hernando County tennis team.

Central, which finished second in the county rankings and third in 3A-5, was next with two selections while Nature Coast Technical's Tom Brown repeated as the County's Coach of the Year.

Only the Leopards' Nyholm and Erik Lawson, along with Coach Brown, were the lone repeat choices from 2007 on the 8-member all-star unit.

Leopards led by Nyholm

Nyholm, who duplicated his 13-win season of his freshman year, was again anointed as the County's Player of the Year after fashioning the best mark at the rugged No. 1 singles at 13-2 and demanding No. 1 doubles position at 11-3.

Along the way, Nyholm, who carries above a 3.8 grade point average, repeated as county champion at No. 1 singles and earned a trip to states (albeit a short stay) thanks to his 2A-6 win in East Pasco County.

In regional action, Nyholm fell to Citrus High's talented Victor Espinoza in three sets, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5, but rallied in the regional final to solve Lecanto High's always-tough Tommy Saltsman in three sets, 7-5, 1-6, 7-5.

Why was Nyholm a unanimous choice (again) for POY?

"He actually improved," insisted Coach Brown. "His game changed completely. He was more of a power player as a freshman. He obviously spent a lot of time in the off-season on his foot work. This year, he extended his points. As a player, he developed his ground strokes. What's weird was I thought his serve was a little weaker."

On Nyholm, Bruzzi said, "Chris is an outstanding player. He wants to learn. He's the type of guy who wanted to win and won't settle for less. He certainly gave 100 percent in all his matches.

"He's the type of player who stays extra," added Coach Bruzzi. "He's constantly practicing. He was the first guy at practice and the last to leave."

What about how the season ended?

"I was asked to bring six kids," Bruzzi recalled. "But the guys were all scattered (the morning of states). We were rushing to get there. We arrived 15 minutes late. Chris' opponent had already left.

"This is nothing against Chris," shared Coach Bruzzi. "It's not his fault. It' was absolutely my responsibility. If I could do it all over again, I wouldn't have taken all six boys. It hurt (Chris not competing at states). It was like the Olympics to get there. I'm still disappointed. Unfortunately, I can't take it back."

Lawson repeats

In 2007, Lawson made the All-County squad at No. 4 singles behind a fine 12-6 won-lost slate. He also teamed up with Lance Vandervoort for an outstanding 14-3 campaign at No. 2 doubles.

That season he captured the county championship at No. 4 singles, but lost in the district finale to NCT's Willie Holobinka, 6-7 (5-7), 6-1, 6-2.

This season, Lawson stepped up his game.

At No. 2 singles, Lawson finished 10-4. His season was highlighted by his second county individual title in besting Central High's Nick Napolitano in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3.

He followed up by reaching the 2A-6 finals, where he lost to Sunlake's Garren Dial in three sets, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

He then split his two regional matches winning against Citrus, before bowing to Lecanto.

On Lawson, "Erik perseveres. He has a lot of patience. And he's a good, close friend to Chris (Nyholm). They practiced together all summer in preparation for this year. There's a huge bond between the two."

Williams excels

As a first-year varsity player, sophomore Jordin Williams finished 9-4 overall at No. 5 singles.

His season was highlighted in the county meet where he solved Central High sophomore T.J. Armstrong in the opening round, 7-5, 6-4. That win, in the only clash between the two netters, over the 3A-5 champ Armstrong, went a long way in swaying the area coaches.

In the finals, Williams easily handled freshman Tyler Schwefringhaus of NCT, 6-3, 6-0.

In districts at Zephyr Park, Williams won his first match before being ousted in the semifinals.

On Williams, "He was the backbone of our team," stressed Bruzzi. "He was kinda our cheerleader. He kept the guys loose. He was the guy who was full of energy.

"Overall, when he arrived he brought some bad habits," added Bruzzi. "But Jordin practiced on his skills. One by one he began learning to correct things in his game."

First-timers: Lane and Brown

Besides Williams, junior Jesse Lane and senior Joel Brown were also first-time All-County picks at No. 2 doubles. The duo led the local circuit with a 7-3 record highlighted by county championship win by default over Central High's Matt Frketic/Nathan Brazeau. Brazeau could not participate in the county finale due to a conflict with the sectional qualifying weightlifting meet at Belleview.

"Lane/Brown -- those guys were consistent," commented Bruzzi. "They complimented each other even more so than Chris and Erik."

Central: one veteran, one rookie

It was an about face for Central High.

In 2006, six Bears were named to the All-County squad -- featuring every singles player, plus Coach of the Year Hank Deslaurier.

But in 2007, the Bears slipped to 4-8 overall and finished third in both county and district.

This spring, CHS reversed its fortunes behind a young team to finish 8-4 overall. CHS finished runner-up in the county and narrowly missed the state playoffs by finishing third in 3A-5 at River Ridge.

The Navy and Silver-clad Bears were paced by senior Matt Frketic and freshman James Wert.

Frketic actually paced the county in wins (14) and was voted as the top player at No. 3 singles.

It was hard to argue with results.

Frketic, who played only two seasons for CHS, went from 8-7 overall in 2007 to a county-best 14-2 mark this spring.

Frketic captured the County Tournament at No. 3 singles by dispatching of Springstead's Matt Cermak, 6-1, 6-0, before solving Lane in three sets, 6-3, 1-6, 6-2.

In the 3A-5 Tourney, Frketic went 3-0 by besting Ridgewood's Shane Doctor, 6-2, 6-1, Wesley Chapel's Justin Prince, 6-3, 6-1, before disposing of River Ridge's Matt Perry, 6-3, 6-1.

"Matt is the kid that links us together as a team," explained seventh-year CHS Head Coach Hank Deslaurier. "Our main focus was to get better for next year, but that didn't stop Matt. He's the one we counted on match in and match out to win. Sometimes with leadership there is a price -- that was Matt."

Wert made an immediate impact as a first-year varsity netter.

Wert, who named to Hernando Today's Middle School All-Star team in 2007 after a perfect 7-0 mark at No. 1 doubles, finished 11-4 as the county's finest player at No. 4 singles.

Wert's stock rose as he swept his county championship matches solving Brown, 6-3, 6-2, and then derailing NCT's Ben DeAngelis, 6-2, 7-5.

In districts, however, the talented freshman was eliminated early by Wesley Chapel's Chris Bird, 6-1, 6-2.

"We had anticipated James playing at No. 5 before the season started," recalled Coach Deslaurier. "As a freshman he was forced into playing a larger role at No. 4. He's a quiet kinda guy. But he's all-business when he steps between the lines. James is a very focused young man."

Brown repeats as COY

Some folks wondered why the coach of the county and district champion Leopards, Bruzzi, was not voted as Coach of the Year.

Upon closer inspection, the tardiness faux pas at Casselberry weighed heavily in the final vote count.

Bruzzi's vote went to the Sharks' Tom Brown, who repeated as Coach of the Year.

"I didn't know him, just like I didn't know of the coaches before I started this year," explained Bruzzi on why he selected Coach Brown, whose team finished with a county-best 12-3 won-lost slate and finished third in the county and third in 2A-5. "I was immediately impressed with his integrity and knowledge of the sport. He was always complimentary. He not only encouraged his players, but all my players, too. Obviously, that's why I speak so highly of the guy."

The response was ditto from Springstead's first-year mentor Glenn Townsend.

"The first time I met Tom (Brown), he was warm and hospitable," recalled Townsend. "I had heard all the things about the rivalry stuff between Nature Coast and Springstead. But I never saw or heard any of that. I never received any animosity. He had a very nurturing environment at his place when we played there. And they had a nice team. They could have crushed us in a rough matter, but they chose to play us in a nice way. That's what I respect."

"I actually feel like we had a good year," shared Coach Brown. "We had great expectations before the season. But with everything that happened, we managed to salvage some things."

How'd it go?

"By playing as many freshmen as we did, this was the kind of season that will make us all better in the long run," described Coach Brown. "Honestly, I thought the road would have been much easier for us this year -- but it didn't happen that way.

"Regardless, we took a doubles team to states," he said. "And that's every coach's dream. That was a huge goal and I'm glad we reached that. Bottom line, we had four freshmen who played seven or more varsity matches. That experience will eventually pay off."

2008 Hernando Today All-County Boys Tennis Team
SINGLES
POS. PLAYER/SCHOOL YR. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - Chris Nyholm, HER $*^= 10th 13 2 .867
No. 2 - Erik Lawson, HER ^= 12th 10 4 .714
No. 3 - Matt Frketic, CEN * 12th 14 2 .875
No. 4 - James Wert, CEN 9th 11 4 .769
No. 5 - Jordin Williams, HER 10th 9 4 .692

DOUBLES
POS. PLAYERS/SCHOOL YRS. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - *Nyholm/Lawson, HER 10th-12th 11 3 .786
No. 2 - *Jesse Lane/Joel Brown, HER 11th-12th 7 3 .700
Player of the Year - Chris Nyholm, Hernando ^=
Coach of the Year - Tom Brown, Nature Coast Technical ^=
$ Denotes State Qualifier
* Denotes County & District Champion
^ Denotes 2007 all-star selection
= Denotes 2006 all-star selection

2007 Hernando Today All-County Boys Tennis Team
SINGLES
POS. PLAYER/SCHOOL YR. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - Chris Nyholm, HER 9th 13 4 .765
No. 2 - *Anthony Carter, NCT 11th 13 4 .765
No. 3 - *Kris Baker, SPG 12th 7 5 .583
No. 4 - Erik Lawson, HER 11th 12 6 .667
No. 5 - *Willie Holobinka, NCT 11th 12 4 .750

DOUBLES
POS. PLAYERS/SCHOOL YRS. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - *Nyholm/Chris Walters, HER 9th-11th 14 5 .737
No. 2 - *Carter/P.J. Watterson, NCT 11th-12th 11 1 .917
Player of the Year - Chris Nyholm, Hernando
Coach of the Year - Tom Brown, Nature Coast Technical

2006 Hernando Today All-County Boys Tennis Team
SINGLES
POS. PLAYER/SCHOOL YR. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - *John McDonald, CEN 12th 14 5 .737
No. 2 - Tony Bulso, CEN 12th 17 4 .810
No. 3 - *Kyle Staton, CEN 12th 19 2 .905
No. 4 - *Shawn Wilson, CEN 12th 17 3 .850
No. 5 - Jon Hayes, CEN 11th 18 2 .900

DOUBLES
POS. PLAYERS/SCHOOL YRS. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - *John McDonald/Staton, CEN 11th-11th 9 2 .818
No. 2 - Lance Vandervoort/Seth Rumbarger, HER 11th-12th 11 2 .846
Player of the Year - John McDonald, Central
Coach of the Year - Hank Deslaurier, Central

2005 Hernando Today All-County Boys Tennis Team
SINGLES
POS. PLAYER/SCHOOL YR. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - John McDonald, CEN 11th 14 4 .778
No. 2 - *Chris Greifenberger, SPG 11th 15 0 1.000
No. 3 - *Raleigh Williams, HER 10th 12 5 .706
No. 4 - *Shawn Wilson, CEN 11th 15 3 .833
No. 4 - *Chris Walters, HER 9th 14 3 .824
No. 5 - Mike Paulter, CEN 11th 12 6 .667

DOUBLES
POS. PLAYERS/SCHOOL YRS. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - *John McDonald/Tony Bulso, CEN 11th-11th 14 3 .824
No. 2 - Williams/Walters, HER 10th-9th 14 4 .778
Player of the Year - John McDonald, Central
Coach of the Year - Hank Deslaurier, Central

2004 Hernando Today All-County Boys Tennis Team
SINGLES
POS. PLAYER/SCHOOL YR. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - John McDonald, CEN 10th 12 5 .706
No. 2 - *Drew Taylor, HER 12th 14 6 .700
No. 3 - Chris Greifenberger, SPG 10th 16 1 .941
No. 4 - *Mike Ehlenbeck, HER 12th 17 5 .773
No. 5 - * Keegan Ledford, HER 12th 18 4 .818
No. 5 - *Tony Bulso, CEN 10th 13 3 .813

DOUBLES
POS. PLAYERS/SCHOOL YRS. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - *Brent Lowman/Daniel Widboom, HER 12th-11th 13 5 .722
No. 2 - *Taylor/Ehlenbeck, HER 12th-12th 9 5 .643
Player of the Year - John McDonald, Central
Coach of the Year - Hank Deslaurier, Central

2003 Hernando Today All-County Boys Tennis Team
SINGLES
POS. PLAYER/SCHOOL YR. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - John McDonald, CEN 9th 10 5 .667
No. 2 - *Drew Taylor, HER 11th 15 4 .789
No. 3 - *Brent Lowman, HER 11th 6 1 .857
No. 4 - *Philip Holtkamp, SPG 12th 8 3 .727
No. 5 - Chris Greifenberger, SPG 9th 9 2 .818

DOUBLES
POS. PLAYERS/SCHOOL YRS. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - *Brent Lowman/Daniel Widboom, HER 12th-11th 13 5 .722
No. 2 - *Taylor/Lowman, HER 11th-11th 9 1 .900
Player of the Year - Drew Taylor, Central
Coach of the Year - Brett Teitelman, Hernando

2002 Hernando Today All-County Boys Tennis Team
SINGLES
POS. PLAYER/SCHOOL YR. WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - *Andrew Sufficool, HER 12th 21 3 .875
No. 2 - *Eric Frechette, HER 11th 17 6 .739
No. 3 - Johann Pambianchi, SPG 11th 8 1 .889
No. 4 - *Brent Lowman, HER 10th 17 5 .773
No. 5 - *Drew Taylor, HER 10th 20 0 1.000
DOUBLES
POS. PLAYERS/SCHOOL YRS WON LOST .PCT
No. 1 - *Sufficool/Frechette, HER 12th-11th 17 6 .739
No. 2 - *J.Pambianchi/Lester Nichols, SPG 11th-10th 3 0 1.000
No. 2 - *Lowman/Ehlenbeck, HER 10th-10th 9 3 .750
Player of the Year - Andrew Sufficool, Hernando
Coach of the Year - Brett Teitelman, Hernando
* Denotes district champion

Sports Editor Tony Castro can be reached at (352) 544-5278 or online at acastro@hernandotoday.com.

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