Sectional not kind to overmatched West

Young, overmatched and not at full strength, Maine West lost its two singles and two doubles matches during Friday's opening round of the tough Glenbrook North Sectional, quickly dashing any hopes of State qualification in Saturday's finals.

Senior co-captain Matt Lemberg and sophomore Steve Bower won their second set in a hard-fought 3-6, 6-4, 6-7 doubles defeat to Glenbrook North.

David Graf, also a senior co-captain, and junior Bret Kravis fell in straight sets to Glenbrook South.

Freshman Ryan Lacerna and sophomore Brian Moss lost singles matches to Schaumburg and Conant, respectively.

A key player was held out for disciplinary reasons, another was injured and a third left the team earlier in the season to devote more time to work.

The Warriors began the season by downing Hoffman Estates and Wheeling, but those would be the last victories. West lost heartbreakers to Maine East and Niles North before finishing in last place in the CSL North meet May 9 and 10.

It didn't help to play on home courts buckling with cracks. Second-year West head coach Derrick Swistak hopes to see a full resurfacing instead of just patching.

To their credit, the Warriors never cracked. They played hard, learned, tried to improve and had a good time.

"We got off to a good start, then it got harder. The kids never gave up. (Assistant coach) Adam (Roubitchek) and I have like minds in terms of what we want to instill in our team. Make the kids good people and better members of society, not just better tennis players," said Swistak, a chemistry teacher.

"I will miss playing for Maine West. It was the most fun part of my day," said Graf, who won the Sportsman Award as a member of West's boys swimming team. "We learned from our defeats. They made us better."

Lemberg preferred last spring's singles role but willingly moved to doubles. He and Bower bonded as they overpowered Wheeling in West's 5-2 win April 2.

"I wanted to do whatever was best for the team," Lemberg said. "I think we showed improvement this year."

Bower did have a special day at singles this season. He lost the first set to Hoffman April 3 and was down 5-1 in the second before coming all the way back to win.

"My coaches taught me a lot," Bower said. "I got more accurate, and more disciplined and better as a person."

Graf and junior Joe Popely paired up at the conference meet and advanced to the final round. Lamberg filled No. 4 singles and gained a consolation win over Niles North.

Hard-hitting senior David Bugajsky partnered with Graf for wins over Hoffman and Wheeling. Bugajsky (sore back) was not available for the sectional.

"The young players don't know what it takes to compete in the CSL yet, but they're working and learning. We were very young, with just four seniors," Swistak noted.

Freshman T. J. Helin, an aggressive three-sport athlete, could become a cornerstone player. Sturdily built Lacerna, a two-way football lineman, showed potential and desire. Junior Paul Chouinard greatly improved his ground strokes by season's end. Junior Kevin Falls was a hard-working contributor as well.