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Stevenson duo rolls into fourth round
Updated: May 27, 2011 10:58AM
At approximately 4:09 Thursday afternoon at Buffalo Grove, Ross Putterman clipped a backhand volley into the net as he watched the ball fall to the ground.
It provided a ray of hope for Neuqua Valley’s Patrick Carpio and Michael Baioch, suggesting Putterman and his partner David Packowitz were at least human.
The optimism proved short-lived.
The Stevenson duo firmly demonstrated why they are the top doubles seed by turning up the heat in overpowering the Wildcats’ tandem 6-1, 6-1 that propelled the two seniors into the round of 32 Friday morning.
The final score was a bit misleading. Three of the games in the first set were extended into multiple deuce points. “We’ve been in this position before, and we know at this point of the tournament you just have to be able to grind out matches,“ Packowitz said.
The two did not allow the conditions, the harsh wind and cold temperatures, to negatively impact their play. With the start of the state tennis tournament delayed by about three hours, they got sharper as the day progressed. “The first couple of matches we started a little lackadaisical and then you play a team like (Neuqua Valley) that has a more consistent return game, and it shows out there,” Packowitz said. “In the second set, we were able to play more of our style.”
The two standouts won three matches in running their mark to 31-0 on the season. They finished state runner-ups as freshmen and sophomores, respectively. Last year they took a sabbatical from the school team to play against elite national competition on the USTA Tour.
Having the opportunity to refine and develop their games not only expanded their abilities, they had the option of playing both singles and doubles. In playing doubles, “we still played together all the time,” Putterman said.
The two perfectly complement each other. Putterman, who is set to play at Washington University in St. Louis, is taller and rangier. He has a booming serve that naturally plays to his forehand side. The Marquette-bound Packowitz is lithe and athletic and is a superb volley player at the net.
They are both skilled and smart. “We’ve been playing together for so long that we know exactly how to come off a serve or return and know where the [opponent] is going to hit the ball and to what side of the court,” Putterman said.
They have also subtly reversed roles. “When we first started out, we were the unknowns, the underdogs and now we’ve the players everybody is gunning for,” Packowitz said. “We’re getting everybody’s best tennis,” Putterman added.
They remain confident of taking the valuable next step. “As long as we continue to play our game, I don’t think there’s anybody out there that’s going to be able to beat us,” Putterman said.
The story of the first day was that the elite players and teams did exactly as expected. Defending champion and heavily favored New Trier advanced its singles players, led by 1-2 seeds Robert Stineman and Jared Hiltzik, and both of its doubles teams to the main draw. New Trier has 24 points, just ahead of defending runner-up Hinsdale Central and Oak Park-River Forest (22 points apiece).
Playing at Wheeling, Hiltzik defeated Cary-Grove’s Chris Federighi 6-3, 6-3 in the third round. “The wind was pretty brutal, and made the day much tougher than normal,” Hiltzik said. The Trevians are focused on the task at hand, he said and not concerned about making any grand statements.
“We’re just thinking one match at a time, and not worried about what other people think,” he said. “But if the seeds hold true and [he plays Stineman in the finals], who could ask for anything better than that?”
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