Kramer's farewell gift: 16th state title

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Dan Ballantine’s sense of timing was perfect.

The Hinsdale Central junior partnered with Ian Tesmond to beat Stevenson sophomores Ross Putterman and David Packowitz 7-5, 6-0 and win the doubles championship at the boys tennis state finals Saturday at Hersey.

Their victory, coupled with Augie Bloom’s fifth-place finish in singles, gave legendary Red Devils coach Jay Kramer a great retirement present because it clinched Hinsdale Central’s third consecutive state championship.

The Red Devils finished with 43 points, while Stevenson was second with 42 and New Trier third with 40.

“[Kramer] puts in a lot so we have to play well for him and it feels good to get a win for him,” Ballantine said. “Everyone is affected by his enthusiasm for the game. He’s a great coach.”

In his 50-year career, Kramer guided Hinsdale to 45 top-five finishes, including 16 state titles and 12 runner-up showings. Ballantine continued a family tradition, as his father, Bro, won a doubles title under Kramer in 1977 and an uncle, Fritz, did the same in 1974.

“I started out as a young man, 22, and I never dreamed that all this good stuff could happen,” Kramer said. “My dream was to win one state title, so this puts a lot of icing on the cake. It’s all about the players. They worked so hard.”

Ballantine and Tesmond (32-1) did not lose a set in the tournament and handed Putterman and Packowitz, who finished second for the second straight year, their only two losses this season. The match was on serve until the 12th game when the Red Devils broke through, clinching the first set on a double fault.

“I think that break at the end of the first set was pretty much the match,” Tesmond said. “We turned it on after that. They’re a great team, but I think we really played some good tennis.”

Stevenson, which was runner-up for the third year in a row, got some consolation when junior Blake Bazarnik defeated top-seeded Michael Moore of Glenbrook South 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 to win the singles title.

No. 2 seed Bazarnik (29-1) beat Lake Zurich freshman Michael Redlicki 6-2, 6-2 in the semifinals, while Moore (36-2) knocked off defending champion Denis Bogatov of Warren 6-1, 6-7, 7-6 in an epic match that took 3 hours, 20 minutes.

“That was an advantage for me because he had a really long first match,” said Bazarnik, who trailed Moore 3-1 and 5-4 in the final set before winning the tiebreaker 7-4. “I don’t know where he got all that energy. At the start of the third set I was so surprised with how much energy he had and then it seemed like he got a little worn down near the end.”

Moore, who spent six hours on the court, would not use it as an excuse.

“It was a long day, but I still had some energy,” Moore said. “I used the maximum time on the changeovers and that helped. It’s just one point here and there, especially in the tiebreaks.”