Rematches galore

Tomorrow could be a day filled with rematches. It's virtually a certainty that the Hurricanes and Rice will be facing off for the third time this season. The Hurricanes have handled Rice both times, but this time the 4.0 city championship will be at stake. Likewise, we face the prospect of a fourth meeting between the Hangovers and Kingwood, but the Black Sheep still have a chance to earn a trip to the finals (and to Dallas).

The biggest matchup of the day in 4.0 was between Rice and Lakeside. To be honest, it was a bit of a disappointment from a fan's perspective. Lakeside was again without both Bret Hern and Eddie Perdomo and had to use Chris Mulgrew in singles. Quack Bui handled Mulgrew but Carl Poston took out Wade Karel to split the singles. Rice's doubles teams of Strasser/Rexilius, Nguyen/Tran and Lemus/Grahm all won their matches, with the Vietnamese duo the only one to drop a set. The much awaited matchup ended up being anticlimatic as Rice won easily, 4-1.

I thought about handing out some postseason "awards" or naming an "all pro" type of team but decided against it. However, if I could give out a "captain of the year" award, I would have to give it to Bill Hunt of Rice. Last year's team was loaded and came very close to going to Nationals. Rice lost 3 singles studs from that team: Yang, Monsigny and Hau, who (according to Hunt) went a combined 43-2 last year. This year he had a team that was basically one tiebreaker away from missing the playoffs, a team with no superstars, and yet they have again earned a trip to Sectionals. Well done.

The Hurricanes also basically clinched a trip to the finals. They trounced Lost Forest's Hackers 5-0, but did have to pull out some tough doubles matches (two third set tiebreakers). Inexplicably, Lost Forest defaulted line 2 singles and had a weak player at line 1. I guess their strategy was to try to sweep the doubles.

On paper, the 4.5 matches today were closer, as both ended 3-2, but there was little drama as the three wins came off the courts rather quickly in both matchups. Ssshhhwing figured to be the Hangovers biggest test, but they passed it with flying colors. Line 1 singles was a battle of lefties, and Don Rios' forehands were a little too much for Danny Vu to handle as Rios prevailed 3 and 6. Chris Hunkler handled Jody Deluca in two close sets, so everything came down to the doubles. Huffman and Whitsett dominated Rothe and Chec, and Green/Benzon squeaked out the first set and coasted in the second against Patterson and Hall. Justin Benoit and Mark Judson took out Allen Teague and Craig Bobo to make the score 3-2.

For all the criticism they took, the Hangovers also deserve some credit. They won their bracket without using either of the two players (David B. and Grant Murphy) that many people felt were "ringers". This certainly bodes well for the Hangovers in Dallas if those to are able to aid the cause at Sectionals.

The other 4.5 match between Kingwood and the Jedi Knights ended up 3-2 Kingwood. For the second year in a row, the doubles matchup between Hai Vu and Tom Caine had some drama and fireworks. Caine came out on top this year, winning the third set breaker with Lawton Park against Vu and Paschal. Ryan Cooper also salvaged a disappointing season by beating previously undefeated Omon Dibua in 3 sets. Dibua had won 4 of his 6 matches in a 3rd set breaker, but Cooper was able to counter the big serve and pull out the win. Odion had less trouble, trouncing Andre Dafel. Armstrong/Hurlbert and Kilshaw/Barrera both surrendured just four games to their overmatched opponents.

So, assuming Kingwood beats the Black Sheep tomorrow, (sooner or later my assumptions about the Black Sheep will be correct) we will see a fourth matchup between the two top teams. Apparently the draw in Dallas is easier for the city champion in both the 4.0 and 4.5 divisions, so there will be a lot riding on tomorrow's finals.