Rochelle netters come back to edge Blue Thunder 3-2

ROCHELLE — Better communication fueled the fire for senior Paul Swartz and freshman Mark Green as the duo worked together to erase a one-set deficit during the Rochelle Hub Varsity Tennis team’s nonconference home match against Belvidere North on Monday evening.

With assistant coach John Michael Loggins coaching the first-year varsity players up, Swartz and Green successfully rallied in the second set, overcoming a two-game deficit and forcing a third-set tiebreaker, where the boys closed the match in dominant fashion to secure a 4-6, 6-4, 10-3 win over Alex Valenzuela and Tyler Sanders at the No. 3 doubles court. The duo’s comeback proved to be the deciding match point for the Hubs, who ultimately edged the Blue Thunder 3-2.

“We were down 3-1 in the second set and were teetering on the edge of losing that set, but my partner Mark kept nailing his serves and that gave us the momentum we needed to take the set and roll through the tiebreaker,” Swartz said. “Coach Loggains came over when we were down and said that we needed to start talking to each other more. We started to motivate each other from that point on and if we made a mistake, we’d pick each other up and move on.”

Belvidere North took the early lead over Rochelle (2-1, 0-1 Interstate 8) on Monday, with the Blue Thunder taking both singles matches. Junior Jimmy Chavez fell 0-6, 0-6 against Spencer Kohls on the No. 1 singles court, while senior Evin Odle managed two games in a 2-6, 0-6 loss to Jack Dickerson on the No. 2 singles court. The Hubs claimed their first match point at the No. 2 doubles court, where senior John Green and junior Parker Lenkaitis showed dominance in their 6-4, 6-1 victory over Aidan Alexander and Jack Stolp.

Action then moved to the No. 1 doubles court, where seniors David Wanner and Owen Haas maintained a steady advantage en route to a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Ben Leake and Kyle Williamson. Monday’s doubles win will likely be one of many this season for the two talented senior players, who teamed up to claim the Interstate 8 Conference title at No. 1 doubles last spring.

“We have a lot of experience and we have a lot of depth,” Wanner said. “Owen and I won the conference championship in doubles last season and that was awesome, but we have a goal of making it to state this season. We have to make something happen at the sectional, but I think we can do that… Our team chemistry is a strength and we know how to pick each other up when we’re in a lull. We also know how to keep each other going when we’re playing well.”

While Wanner and Haas closed out their win on the No. 1 doubles court, Swartz and Green were busy rallying back to extend their No. 3 doubles match into a third-set tiebreaker, where the senior and freshman kept the ball in play and put their Belvidere North opponents on the defensive. Both matches concluded almost simultaneously, with Rochelle taking both points. The Hubs will host an Interstate 8 match against the Kaneland Knights on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.

“It was a huge confidence booster for me, especially after a tough loss against LaSalle-Peru last week,” Swartz said. “I had a different partner today, but he stepped up and I was able to match his play. Getting that swagger back was big for me and getting the team win in a close match is nice because we know we’re capable of coming through in the clutch.”