Shelby repeats as Sam Sabback champion

BUCYRUS — It was a new beginning, of sorts, for the Sam Sabback Invitational Tennis Tournament at Bucyrus High School.

It was the first time Redmen coach Kris Knodell took charge of the seven-team tournament, as previous tournament director John Supon stepped aside after last year.

The results were familiar, however, as Shelby repeated as champions, edging fellow Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference member Pleasant.

“I was extremely nervous overall. I think I’ve been up since 2:30 (a.m.),” Knodell said. “Everything went smooth. My wife (Shelley), God love her, she helped me with everything. Together, we made a pretty good team on it.”

The other change was to the format: four doubles teams per entrant instead of the standard three singles and two doubles. The sets were increased from six to eight points to win.

“We changed it up with doubles,” Knodell said. “Sam liked doubles and I’m kind of a doubles person too. So, it gives an extra person a chance to play. It also kind of speeds things up because it takes one spot out of the rotation.”

Sabback, the namesake of the tournament, was a long-time instructor and supporter of tennis in Bucyrus and the surrounding area.

Shelby was unfazed by the change in format as the Whippets swept first place in all four doubles brackets, racking up 16 team points. Pleasant hung close, finishing second in all brackets, good for 12 points.

“They were close,” Knodell said of the Whippets-Spartans battle. “Shelby’s winning the (MOAC) right now. It’s great tennis overall. Upper Sandusky came in strong at third.”

In first doubles, Mahek and Carver beat Murphy and West, 8-2. Baker and Marquis defeated Jordan and Miller by the same score in second doubles.

In the closest match for first, May and Vogt edged Klaiber and Miller, 8-5, in third doubles. In fourth doubles, Wuchich and Lantz took care of Pleasant’s Wening and Leslie, 8-1.

Third place was another sweep for Upper Sandusky, with the fourth-place finishes being split between Bucyrus and Ontario.

“I think it’s (the doubles format) a little bit more of a fun atmosphere,” Knodell said. “Some are experiencing for the first time.”

For first doubles, the Lady Rams’ LaMont and Diaz dropped Ontario’s Friend and Criss, 8-2. In second doubles, Haas and Kreais got by the Warriors’ Bednarz and Dean, 8-3.

Host Bucyrus got their points in third and fourth doubles. Upper Sandusky’s Herring and Sayre squeaked past Swerlein and Weber, 8-6, in third doubles. The Rams’ Collins and Strong tripped the Lady Red’s Green and Zornes, 8-3.

Ontario and Bucyrus got two points each for their fourth-place finishes and tied for fourth.

“We tied for fourth,” Knodell said. “We’ve got a lot of young girls. Again, with some of them not playing doubles before, it threw a little wrench into it. But it makes it fun. I was very, very proud of their overall effort.”

Knodell is now ready to move forward as a tournament director.

“Now I have experience,” Knodell said. “I’m going to take over the boys’ program, so I’ll have experience going into the Grandy — how to get things done and pay the honor to (Jim) Grandy and to Sam for what they’ve done for Bucyrus tennis.”