By Craig Adkins
Contributing Writer
INDIANAPOLIS â???Anytime that Indianapolis Cathedral and Brebeuf get together on
the tennis court, friendships are out the window, especially for the players.
For two teams that battled until the gritty end of their
boys tennis match Aug. 30, you would have thought when all eyes were on the No.
1 doubles teams going game for game into their third set that the match score
hadnâ??t been decided yet. Unfortunately for the home-standing eighth-ranked
Braves, No. 6 Cathedral had already clinched the match on its way to a 4-1
victory.
But that finality didnâ??t even enter the minds of Brebeufâ??s
red-haired combo of Adam Katz and Scott Schmelzer. After winning the first set
6-4, they fought back for every single point of every game after that before
ultimately succumbing to Alex Snider and Brett Barra, 7-5, 7-5.
â??Itâ??s a big-time matchup,â? said Cathedral coach Mark Noe,
whose Fighting Irish are the defending boys state champions. â??Brebeuf has
always been a big rival. Theyâ??re way better than their number eight ranking.â?
The most unique thing about Brebeufâ??s team is that the
Braves carry no seniors on their seven-man roster, and amazingly three freshman
man the singles positions. Taking command of the No. 2 singles match from the
get-go, Brebeuf ninth-grader Charlie Hurst parlayed every opportunity that
Travis Mandrell handed him in a 6-4, 6-3 victory for Brebeufâ??s only win.
At No. 1 singles, Chris Plump of Brebeuf had Cathedralâ??s Luke
Bielawski frustrated many times in their hard-fought match, but it was Bielawski
that prevailed over the freshman in straight sets, 6-4, 6-2. No. 3 singles also
was taken by Cathedral in a stout 6-1, 6-0 outing by Charlie Russell over the
third Brebeuf frosh, Russel Kowlowitz.
Finally, Cathedralâ??s David Stauffer and Jeff Lucas captured
the No. 2 doubles match with a 6-4, 6-3 win over the Bravesâ?? Patrick Miller and
Jake Nice.
Brebeuf coach Rick Scotten has a lot of confidence when it
comes to where he puts his youthful players on the day of a match.
â??We had players battling it out in practice in the past
week, and now weâ??re playing freshmen at all three singles spots,â? he said. â??Weâ??ve
got a really strong group.
â??Theyâ??re going to be awesome to watch in the next few
years, especially when theyâ??re seniors.â?
You canâ??t help but realize when looking around the tennis
complex at Brebeuf that fans from both these northside Indianapolis private schools know each other
like theyâ??re on the same cheering squad. Because some of these players might
have grown up together, it makes the rivalry just that much better.
6-2
6-3
6-1, 6-0
Schmelzer 4-6, 7-5, 7-5
Miller/Jake Nice 6-4, 6-3
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