Rockhurst and Pembroke Hill each finish second in team tennis at Missouri state tournament
A pair of area traditional powers advanced to championship matches at the Missouri boys state tennis tournament on Thursday.
But both Rockhurst and Pembroke Hill fell in title matches at the Cooper Tennis Complex.
Rockhurst saw its three-year run come to an end with a 5-2 loss to rival Columbia Rock Bridge in the Class 2 final.
“It was great to be a part of three of them,” said Rockhurst senior Justin Nogalski, who was the lone Rockhurst winner in singles, doing so at No. 1. “I would have loved to go out with another one, but it wasn't meant to be this year.”
Nogalski will join his brother John at St. Louis University to continue his tennis career.
“I can only hope that college tennis is as fun as it has been at Rockhurst,” Nogalski said. “I especially have loved it here at state where the atmosphere is so great. It is always a high energy match when we face Rock Bridge.”
This is the third time in the last four years that the two powers have met in the championship match with Rockhurst winning in 2013 and 2015. (Rockhurst defeated CBC in the finals in 2014.)
The Hawklets, who had defeated Lindbergh 5-1 in the semifinals Thursday morning, dropped two of the three doubles matches against the Bruins. Nogalski was first off the court in singles with a convincing 6-1, 6-3 victory over Rock Bridge freshman Kamran Farid at No. 1 singles.
But Rock Bridge got straight-set wins in singles from freshman Jake Frauerfelder (No. 2), junior Brian Baker (No. 3) and freshman Kavin Anand (No. 5).
“It came down to some big points at the end, and Rock Bridge played those points well,” Rockhurst coach Zach Frisch said. “They are a deserving champion, but I could not be prouder of how we competed today. We left everything out there. It was a great championship match, and the atmosphere was great. It was good for high school tennis.”
Pembroke Hill also fell a match short of a team title in Class 1. The Raiders needed almost four hours to escape with a 5-4 semifinal win over John Burroughs. The highlight was a three-set win at No. 1 singles by Josh Bortnick over Zale Shah, who was a state singles medalist last year.
The two players could match up in the second round of Class 1 singles in the individual portion of the tournament Friday.
Pembroke Hill was no challenge to MICDS in the state final. The Rams won their fourth consecutive team title and 16th in history with a convincing 5-0 win over the Raiders. Pembroke Hill was able to win only six total games in the five completed matches.
“MICDS is just a great team,” Pembroke Hill coach Justin Romick said. “Any of their top three players could play No. 1 on any team in Kansas City. But I was really proud of our fight today. They made Dale (Eshelbrenner) proud.”
Long-time coach Eshelbrenner was unable to make the trip because of health issues.
The individual portion of the tournament begins Friday at 9 a.m..
This story was originally published May 26, 2016 at 8:34 PM with the headline "Rockhurst and Pembroke Hill each finish second in team tennis at Missouri state tournament."