Netters fourth at BRC Tourney

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The Wildcat boys tennis team didn’t improve on its fourth place finish from a year ago at this year’s Big Rivers Conference Tournament, but it provided several upsets on its way to placing fourth for the second straight season.

Eau Claire Memorial rolled to championships in all flights to win the BRC title with 42 points while Hudson took second with 24, Eau Claire North third with 18 and River Falls fourth with 16. Menomonie finished fifth with 9 and Chippewa Falls sixth with 3.

Bobby Perkins-McIntosh at No. 1 singles, and Sam Chatt at No. 2 singles, led the Wildcats with second place finishes while Dan Gerbec and Luke Jenkins teamed up for a fourth place finish at No. 3 doubles and Jimmy Ekman took fourth at No. 4 singles.

“I’m very pleased with the way the boys performed today,” head coach David Markson said. “Bobby finally played the kind of tennis I knew he was capable of and showed himself to be one of the conference’s strongest players. It should serve him well going into sectional competition.”

Perkins-McIntosh opened with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Nhat Le of Menomonie before posting a 6-1, 6-3 win over Zach Blum of Hudson, who he had lost to 6-0, 6-0 earlier this season. In the finals, he dropped a 6-2, 6-2 decision to Eau Claire Memorial’s Florent Marco to take second.

Chatt entered the tournament as the No. 2 seed at No. 2 singles and received a bye in the opening round before defeating Michael Lund of Eau Claire North, 7-6, 6-3. He then lost to Eau Claire Memorial’s Michael Rolen, 6-0, 6-1 in the finals.

“Sam played his usual solid game and is gaining confidence as he continues to win over players with more high-powered styles,” Markson said.

At No. 3 doubles, Gerbec and Jenkins rolled over the 4thseeded duo from Eau Claire North, 6-2, 6-1, before falling to top-seeded Hudson, 612, 6-1 in the semifinals. They earned third place with a close 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 win over Menomonie.

Ekman posted a 6-3, 6-0 win over Chippewa Falls in his first round match at No. 4 singles before losing to Eau Claire Memorial’s Kevin Harp in the semifinals and Hudson’s James Meineke in the third place match.

Kusha Rahgozar was upset by a Menomonie player, 6-1, 6-2, in his first round match at No. 3 singles before rallying to take fifth place with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Chippewa Falls.

The Wildcat No. 1 and No. 2 doubles teams both fell just short in first round losses before easy fifth place wins. Jackson Rohde and Nick Ambur at No. 1 doubles nearly upset Menomonie before falling in three sets, then coming back to beat Chippewa Falls for fifth place, while Pat Davison and Matt Wolf also lost to Menomonie in the first round before beating Chippewa Falls in the fifth place match.

“They played well and took some steps in the right direction,” Markson said about the Cats’ three fifth place finishers. “If they continue it will lead to even better results at the sub-sectional and sectional competitions.”

The Cats have a double-dual match Thursday with Eau Claire Regis and Baldwin-Woodville before traveling to New Richmond Monday for a WIAA Division 1 Sub-Sectional. Qualifiers will advance to the sectional round Thursday, May 22, in Marshfield.

Tags: sports, wildcat, tennis, ri er, falls