The Observer’s 2023 high school boys tennis preview
Marvin Ridge captured the public schools’ 4A state championship last spring in boys’ team tennis.
Meanwhile, Charlotte Country Day and Gaston Day each finished second in divisions of the private schools’ state tournament, and Hickory and Pine Lake Prep did the same in the public school team tournaments.
Here’s a highlight on what to expect this spring:
Teams to watch
Burns: Looking for a newcomer in the 2A ranks? How about the Bulldogs, who have all but one player back from the Southern Piedmont 1A/2A’s second-place team. The returnees include senior Ian Hunnell, a former conference player of the year, and senior Jacob Jensen. Hunnell and Jensen reached the state tournament in doubles last spring.
Charlotte Country Day: Any team led by state title contender Noah McDonald figures to be strong, and that’s the case for the Buccaneers. The Bucs have several key players back from a 14-2 team.
Cox Mill: Lake Norman won the Greater Metro 4 4A last season, but Cox Mill is poised to make a move this spring. Two-time state tournament Adya Nataraj and teammate Nithin Nallapata figure to lead coach Matthew Sheets’ team.
Hickory: Coach Jon Graham’s team was hit hard by graduation and figures to be stronger in singles than doubles this spring. Griffin Lovern was part of a doubles team that went 13-1 last season and finished second in the state. Freshman Graeme Powers and junior Clint Powers will join Lovern in singles.
Hough: The Huskies went unbeaten during the regular season in 2022, falling to eventual state champion Marvin Ridge. Most of the key players from that team are back.
Lake Norman Charter: The Knights were 15-0 last season, and new head coach Jackson Plyler could have a powerhouse, led by Charlie Han (22-3 in singles) and Sean Huynh (33-4).
Marvin Ridge: There were some losses to graduation, but the defending 4A state team tennis champion has enough talented returnees to challenge again. But Coach Kyle Williams’ team will face a tough challenge in the Southern Carolina 4A Conference from Weddington and Cuthbertson.
Pine Lake Prep: All-everything player Tyler Ramanata has graduated, but the Pride returns nearly everyone else, including sophomore Dylan Patel, who had a winning record at No. 2 singles last spring as a freshman; and senior Alex Sieni, who was 8-1 in No. 3 singles.
Providence Day: The Chargers are loaded and hope to give Charlotte Country Day a battle in the CISAA. Shaurya Bharadwaj finished the summer season ranked No. 9 nationally for 16-under players, and teammate Renat Kramin was No. 5 in 14-under. That’s a good duo to build around.
Players to watch
Shaurya Bharadwaj (Providence Day): He comes into his senior season off a superb summer campaign on the junior circuit, finishing as the No. 9-ranked 16-under player in the nation.
James Dover (South Point): His freshman season was spectacular, as Dover finished 14-2 and reached the 3A state semifinals. He figures to be a state title contender as a sophomore.
Jesus Espinoza (Hough): Espinoza, a junior, was part of a doubles team that went 11-2 last season and finished second in the 4A state tournament.
Noah McDonald (Charlotte Country Day): He was 6-0 last season in No. 1 singles and led his team to a second-place finish in the state tournament, McDonald is ranked as a five-star prospect by several college recruiting services.
Connor Milligan (Lincoln Charter): A senior, Milligan finished 20-1 in No. 2 singles last spring and reached the 2A state tournament.
Abhi Parimi (Lake Norman Charter): Parimi went 39-3 as a junior, winning the South Piedmont 3A and Western 3A Regional singles championships.
Walker Valentine (Lake Norman): A senior, Valentine had a 12-1 singles record last season and finished second in the 4A state tournament.
Harrison Williams (Marvin Ridge): Williams, a senior, went 12-01 at No. 2 singles last season and was part of the 4A state championship doubles team.
Notes
▪ The area’s higher-elevation schools typically are at a disadvantage, with bad weather delaying the start of their seasons. But look for Hibriten, behind Shane Stevens and Ben Waechter, and Watauga, with Steele Neely at No. 1 singles, to be state powers.
▪ A familiar face has returned to the Charlotte-area boys’ tennis coaching ranks. David Johnson, who coached boys’ and girls’ tennis for seven years at Providence Day before resigning to start a nonprofit, will coach this spring at Covenant Day. He is building his team around standouts Hamilton Huitt and Noah Rogers.
▪ The CISAA is always an absolute powerhouse of a conference in boys’ tennis, and this season will be no different. Charlotte Country Day and Providence Day are the favorites, but Charlotte Latin has Thomas Davis (a Hampden-Sydney commit) and two other talented seniors; Cannon School has junior Isaac Szilagyi; Johnson is back as coach at Covenant Day; and Charlotte Christian has several returnees.
▪ One rivalry to watch this season: sophomore James Dover (South Point) vs. junior Drew Crotts (Stuart Cramer) in the Big South 3A. Both players reached the state tournament last season.
Steve Lyttle on Twitter: @slyttle
This story was originally published February 22, 2023 at 5:30 AM with the headline "The Observer’s 2023 high school boys tennis preview."