The Charlotte Observer high school boys’ tennis season preview: Teams, players to watch
The Charlotte Observer’s 2024 high school boys’ tennis player of the year is back. So is the entire lineup of the defending 3A state dual meet champion.
Add in several other outstanding players and some new faces, and you have the makings of a strong high school tennis season in 2025 across the Charlotte area.
Jackson DiMenna, who won the 4A singles state championship last season as a junior, returns for Providence. South Point, the 3A team champion, has all of its roster returning.
Here are some of the top players and teams to watch for this season, along with some notes of interest:
Teams to watch
(listed alphabetically)
Cannon School: With juniors Jack Kirby, Arjun Ram and Brandon Wong, the Cougars figure to chase Providence Day and Covenant Day for the CISAA title.
Charlotte Catholic: The top six players are back, and the Cougars should be a force in the 4A playoffs.
Hickory Ridge: The Ragin’ Bulls have four four-year starters — Krish Patel, Thomas Waters, Joseph Malecki and Mateo Salas Urraza — returning from a team that was 10-3 a year ago.
Lincoln Charter: Five of the top six players are back from a team that reached the 2A quarterfinals last spring. The only loss was No. 1 singles player Grayson Upchurch, who graduated.
Myers Park: The Mustangs reached the 4A quarterfinals last spring and have their No. 1, 3, 5 and 6 players returning. They’ll get a test, however, with a tough schedule that includes Lake Norman, Hough, Charlotte Catholic, T.C. Roberson, East Mecklenburg and Cuthbertson.
Pine Lake Prep: After making it to the 2A state final in 2024 before losing to Franklin Academy, Pine Lake will be led by senior Jackson Grathwohl. They’ll have a battle with Lincoln Charter in the Catawba Shores 1A-2A but should be a powerhouse again.
Providence: The Panthers were 4A team runners-up and are led by the returning 4A singles champion, senior Jack DiMenna. There were plenty of seniors on that 2024 team, but the Panthers have a strong program and are likely to reload.
Providence Day: There were lots of seniors on last year’s team, which finished second in the NCISAA’s Division 1, but Tejus Ranadive (9-1 in the 2024 regular season) returns for a program that is always strong.
South Point: No. 1 singles player Shiv Patel is back. So are James and Rex Dover, the No. 1 doubles team. In fact, there wasn’t a senior on last season’s South Point team, which captured the 3A team title.
Players to watch
(listed alphabetically)
Colin Cerminara (Davidson Day): Cerminara, a sophomore, was 21-6 last spring for a Davidson Day team that won the NCISAA’s Division 3 championship.
Noah Cochran and Clark Mullen (Lincoln Charter): This duo accounted for 60 overall match victories last spring and reached the 2A state semifinals in doubles.
Cade Combs and Oliver Stamey (North Iredell): Combs was 13-3 and Stanley 11-2 in singles last spring, and they were 11-2 at No. 1 doubles. They’re part of a potentially strong North Iredell team.
Nikhil Deshpande (Langtree Charter): A senior, Deshpande was the 1A state singles runner-up last year after winning the singles championship as a freshman and a sophomore.
Hamilton Huitt (Covenant Day): A Queens commit, Huitt was an all-state player last season.
Jack Kirby (Cannon School): A junior, Kirby was 10-5 in No. 3 singles last spring but appears ready to make the big leap this season.
Shiv Patel (South Point): Patel was MVP on the Raiders’ team that won the 3A team championship. He then reached the semifinals in individual singles play and had a 16-1 regular-season record.
Justin Persinger (Charlotte Christian): Persinger earned all-CISAA honors as a freshman and a sophomore and was an all-state pick last spring. He is ranked No. 11 in North Carolina and is a three-star recruit.
Zack Plyler (Myers Park): Plyler, a junior, reached the state tournament in doubles last season and will play singles this spring.
Tejus Ranadive (Providence Day): Ranadive, a senior, went 9-1 in singles last season and was part of an unbeaten doubles team with junior Rafael Lopez.
Tejas Sridhar (Lake Norman Charter): A senior, Sridhar is coming off an unbeaten season and reached the state tournament in doubles last spring. He will play singles in the individual tournament this season.
Cooper Streiff and Will Kaufmann (Charlotte Catholic): This tandem reached the regionals last season and will be keys to the Cougars’ success in 2025.
Notes
▪ David Johnson, who coached for seven seasons at Providence Day, has moved over to Covenant Day this spring. He has all of last year’s starters returning at his new school.
▪ The defending 3A state team champion has a new coach this season. Sean Harmon has taken over the reins at South Point.
▪ Cox Mill coach Matthew Sheets is expecting big things this spring from Sanjit Nathan and Brayden Speicher, who form one of the region’s best sophomore doubles squads.
▪ Stuart Cramer has been a 3A contender in recent seasons, but coach Andrew Bradley is rebuilding this spring. The top six players off last season’s team either graduated or decided not to play this spring.
▪ Speaking of starting from scratch ... Phil Goldberg is doing exactly that at Ballantyne Ridge, a first-year Charlotte high school with no senior class.
▪ North Iredell was 14-2 last season, and coach Corrine Rupp has stepped up the schedule, adding 1A power Mount Airy and 4A’s Lake Norman.
This story was originally published February 18, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
