Vanessa Abrahamson Blog: Arapahoe ranks fifth at the state tennis tournament

Cherry Creek junior Nick Svichar had fun partying with his tennis teammates, taking turns holding a trophy and posing with it for photos.

It was a state runner-up, however, and Svichar took some time out later on October 13 to share the reality of the situation on the court at the Gates Tennis Center.

“Yes, most teams would love to win a second trophy,” said Svichar. “But we’ve been state runners-up for the last two years and that’s not what’s expected for Cherry Creek. We just have to get back to work for next season.”

Regis Jesuit won the state championship by a score of 76 to 65 for Creek. Arapahoe finished fifth with 25 points and Valor Christian rounded out the top 10 with 11 points.

Regis and Creek fought for state supremacy, but as Svichar admits, the Bruins were outplayed in the semifinals.

Both Regis and Creek had three singles and three doubles teams on October 12 that advanced to the semifinals. However, Creek won only two semifinals games, while Regis won five of the six semifinals games, giving the Raiders a commanding lead ahead of the final round of the three-day tournament.

Cherry Creek did well on the backing tracks, but not enough to make a difference in the final standings.

The Bruins’ No. 2 doubles team, composed of Andrew Marocchi and Matt Batmunkh, defeated Will Franks-George Weaver, Denver East, 6-1, 6-1 to win Creek’s singles title. Svichar defeated Boulder’s Alex McCoy 6-4, 7-6 to finish third in the No. 2 singles and was one of four third-place finishers for Creek.

In the past 46 seasons, the Creek boys’ tennis teams have won 42 state titles, which makes the last two runner-ups so unusual. Fairview ousted the Bruins to take the 2017 title.

It was Regis’ performance in the semifinals that made all the difference as the Raiders went into the finals with a nine-point lead and needed just three wins on Oct. 13 to capture the school’s second state crown in eight seasons.

The Raiders won state championships in three positions, finished second in two others, and finished third once. Four wins were achieved in the final round.

“We had six semifinalists and they had six, but they took five to the finals,” said Creek coach Art Quinn. “If we had stayed the same, we would have fought head to head. They honored the 1978 Bruins team when they announced the opening games. I was able to locate five of the nine players. It was hard to believe that was 40 years ago, so that was nice.”

In other games involving players from South Metro schools, Arapahoe senior Tyler Landen defeated Creek’s George Cavo in the third-place playoff in singles No. 1 to avenge a previous loss to Cavo.

“I think I played pretty well since I lost to him in three sets in the regular season,” Landen said. “I had a different mindset. I knew what I was going to do and I came out and executed it pretty well. I knew I could beat him if I put my mind to it – which I did.”

Valor Christian’s Nick Solimene accumulated nine of the 11 points scored by the Golden Eagles as he finished third in singles with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Arapahoe’s Ryan Wood.

“I hurt my knee again and had to play through that,” said Solimene. “I played well. I just collected myself and came in with short balls. I tore my cruciate ligament and it failed, but I played my game and it worked. Last November I had ACL and PCL surgery but just before I was discharged I found out I had torn my ACL again. But I just played it through this season.”

Results of the finals of Day 3 of the 5A State Tennis Tournament on October 13th at the Gates Tennis Center in Denver:

#1 Singles: Championship – Christian Holmes, Chatfield def. Morgan Schilling, Regis Jesuit, 7-5, 7-5. Third place – Tyler Landen, Arapahoe, def. George Cavo, Cherry Creek, 6-3, 6-3.

#2 Individuals: Championship – Kosta Garger, Regis Jesuit, def. Austin Kattenhorn, Broomfield, 6-0, 6-1. Third place – Nick Svichar, Cherry Creek, def. Alex McCoy, Boulders, 6-4, 7-6.

No. 3 Individuals: Championship – Conor Kaczmarczyk, Regis Jesuit, def. Drew Hill, Cherry Creek, 6-3, 4-6, 6-0. Third place – Nick Solimene, Valor Christian def. Ryan Wood, Arapahoe, 6-2, 6-3.

Doubles #1: Championship – Emilio Gonzalez-Evan Nuss, defeated Regis Jesuit. Beck Chrisbens-Brody Pinto, Fairview, 6-1, 6-2. Third Place – Devin Brownstein-Will Hoist, Cherry Creek def. Jack Vanderberg-Charlie Vanderberg, Broomfield, 6-3, 6-0.

#2 Doubles: Championship – Andrew Marocchi-Matt Batmunkh, Cherry Creek def. Will Franks-George Weaver, Denver East, 6-1, 6-1. Third place – Grigor Karakelyan-Phillip Albright, Regis Jesuit def. Halle Humphrey-Reid Shaffer, Fairview, 6-4, 5-7, 6-1.

#3 Doubles: Championship: Jack Abbey-Barry Dechtman, Denver East, def. Ryan Grayson-Adam Heilbronner, Fairview, 6-3, 6-4. Third Place – Kyle Kirkby-Cameron Morrey, Fossil Ridge def. Ryan Flora-Braden Mayer, Cherry Creek, 6-3, 1-6, 6-2.

Doubles #4: Brady Elliott – John Shelby, Fossil Ridge, def. Nathan Tolva-Jack Carbone, Regis-Jesuit, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6. Third place – Cedric Loehr-Brock Bryant, Cherry Creek, def. Cooper Hanley-Conner Smith, Monarch, 7-5, 6-7, 6-3.

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