Central Ohio boys tennis players close in on OHSAA state championships
Eighteen central Ohio boys tennis players need four wins to capture a state championship, and they will get their chance Thursday and Friday during the state tournament at the College of Wooster.
New Albany leads the way with four qualifiers, two in singles and two in doubles, tying a program record set in 2018 and matched in 2021. Bexley, Columbus Academy and Olentangy Liberty all have three, and with most of last year’s champions either graduated or playing the opposite discipline after having previously been in singles or doubles, trophies are there for the taking.
Here is a look at the state tournament from a central Ohio perspective:
New Albany's Dandu leads Division I singles qualifiers
Not only is New Albany junior Abhinav Dandu in his first state tournament, he has arrived in dominant fashion. Dandu is 8-0 in the postseason and has dropped only two sets, both at a Hilliard Bradley sectional that included all four state singles qualifiers.
Dandu outlasted classmate and teammate Jackson Clements 7-6 (6-2), 4-6, 6-2 in a sectional semifinal but beat him 6-3, 6-1 in the district final Saturday at Upper Arlington.
Clements is the only repeat state qualifier, having advanced as a sophomore. Dublin Coffman junior Nik Shough and Olentangy Liberty sophomore Shane Hand round out the area qualifiers.
“It was nerve-racking last year, but hopefully I have the upper hand on some people because I’ve been in that situation,” Clements said.
Hand played doubles last spring with brother Liam, now a senior. They fell one win short of state.
“It’s a different feeling when it’s just you playing singles out there,” Shane Hand said. “I thought it was a great opportunity to make a run.”
New Albany's Bilenko is veteran of Division I doubles group
New Albany senior Ben Bilenko is at state for the fourth time and coming off his first district championship, won with sophomore Tyler Thomas. They edged Liberty brothers Krish and Arya Badri, a senior and sophomore, respectively, 1-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the final.
Bilenko and Thomas could meet 2023 runners-up Arjun Rajagopala and Andrew Wittenbaum from Cincinnati Sycamore in a quarterfinal.
Olentangy senior Sujan Sriram is at state for the second consecutive season. Having teamed with 2023 graduate Mitch MacDowell a year ago, Sriram now plays with sophomore Gavin Cheung.
“They’re different,” Sriram said. “(MacDowell) was a doubles player at heart. Gavin, I’ve been able to watch him grow as a doubles player. He’s definitely a singles player at heart, but getting to watch him grow and become the doubles player he is now has been a surreal experience.”
UA junior Jackson Lloyd and sophomore Keshav Goyal are the Golden Bears’ first state-qualifying doubles team since 2018.
Bexley's Lessard seeks Division II singles title
At 22-1 on the season, Bexley freshman Henry Lessard appears well-positioned to bring central Ohio its first Division II singles title since Watterson’s Chris Diaz in 2011.
Lessard’s only loss came against Sycamore star Nick Meyers. Lessard cruised to the district title Saturday, defeating Academy’s Nason Lo 6-0, 6-2.
“He’s exceeded expectations (and) I didn’t know if that was possible,” Bexley coach Will Gingery said. “I knew he was going to be a great player, but he’s even a level or two above what I’ve seen in high school kids, especially freshmen. His mental part of the game, he can play poorly for stretches and then turn it over and take (the match) over.”
Pepper Pike Orange’s Ben Pomeranets, the 2022 and 2023 champion, now plays at Virginia Tech. Former teammate Chika Nwoazuzu won the doubles title last year but is playing singles as a senior and is a potential second-round opponent for Lo.
Columbus Academy, Bexley duos look to win Division II
Academy junior Rowen Lo, who was third at state in doubles last year with Nason, teamed with classmate Lucas Xue to win the doubles district championship. They defeated Bexley senior Oscar Ramsden and junior Sam Lessard 6-2, 6-4.
Xue has competed at state in singles each of the past two years.
Gingery said he contemplated teaming the Lessard brothers earlier this season.
“We talked both routes (singles and doubles),” Gingery said. “I think Henry wanted to play singles and Sam has a good relationship with Oscar. They get along well.”
The other half of last year’s Orange title duo, Gabi Kalir, is back in the doubles field with classmate Ace Bloom. Runners-up Arick Baldwin and Noah Boyce of Dayton Oakwood remain a team as seniors and are on Lo and Xue’s side of the bracket.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Which Ohio boys tennis players could win OHSAA state championships?
