INDIANAPOLIS – When asked where he was in 1973, Brebeuf Jesuit boys tennis coach Brandon Gill grinned and laughed before answering.
“Ah, I was in the cosmos still waiting to be created I guess,” Gill joked as his top-ranked Braves celebrated a state title at North Central High School’s Barbara S. Wynne Tennis Center. “Yeah, 50 years. That’s pretty amazing. That’s special.”
Fifty-one years to be exact. For longer than any of the coaches or players have been alive the Brebeuf Jesuit tennis program endured state championship futility.
At least, that was, until Saturday.
Ranked first in the state from the start of the season until the end of the 58th annual IHSAA boys team tennis state finals, the Braves ended the drought, defeating No. 4 Center Grove 3-2 to clinch their second championship and first since 1973.
“It feels amazing. To be the first team in 51 years to hold the trophy,” Brebeuf senior Will Hutchison said. “I watched my older brother (Chase) compete for four years, so to do this for my family and everyone on the team is amazing.”
Sophomore Tony Tancredi sealed the historic feat with a 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 win at No. 2 singles in a battle with Trojans’ sophomore Yuvraj Dasari, to break the 2-2 deadlock.
Center Grove, which lost to Brebeuf during the regular-season 3-2, claimed their two points with a pair of doubles wins in their first meeting.
Early on, the pattern held true with Center Grove’s No. 1 doubles tandem of seniors Carson Bush and Daksh Patel winning 6-4, 6-1 over seniors Ethan Birge and Anthony Suscha.
Brebeuf junior Owen Birge tied the team score 1-1 with a 6-2, 6-2 victory at No. 3 singles against senior Quinn Smith before the Braves unexpectedly grabbed a 2-1 lead from No. 2 doubles.
The doubles duo of sophomore Andrew Held and junior Harry Stutler prevailed 6-3, 7-6 (9-7) in a tiebreaker and shifted the focus towards the last two remaining singles matches where the Braves held the prior advantage.
“I wasn’t sure what was going on, but I just kept my head in my match, and I supported my teammates on the courts next to me, and we were able to get it done,” Hutchison said.
Not without some pressure.
Center Grove (23-4) advanced to the championship round with a 5-0 quarterfinal win over Penn on Friday before knocking off Jasper, 3-2, during Saturday morning’s semifinals. Jasper beat Center Grove 3-2 in the regular season on Sept. 27.
The Trojans were seeking to avenge two of their three losses in search of the program’s first state title since 2008. A 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 win by senior Tyler Lane against Hutchison at No. 1 singles put them in position with the match tied 2-2.
“We played this team before. We knew how good they were, and we knew there was a good chance we’d play them again,” Gill said. “My hat is off to Center Grove. Great team and great coaches. They played hard.”
Fortunately, the Braves (24-1), who swept past No. 8 Evansville Memorial, 5-0, on Friday and No. 15 South Bend Saint Joseph, 5-0, in the semifinals, were prepared for the situation.
“Last year, (Tony) lost a tough match in sectional, and I know he wanted to come back and win one not just for these guys but also for the seniors last year,” Gill said. “I know he was thinking about that all offseason, and he had some injuries this season. But he loves the big moment. He showed it. He dug really deep.”
This season, the Braves concentrated their preseason and in-season training on mental toughness while working with coach Tommy Short.
“As much as we practiced, we put time into the classroom and focused on things that were more mental, and I think it paid off,” Gill said. “Tennis is so mental. It’s part of the game that a lot of times other people don’t focus on, and we made an emphasis to be more mature as a team this year and focus on that.”
Tancredi’s determination elevated, as he built a 5-3 lead in the third set with all other matches finished.
Earlier in the season, Tancredi played No. 1 singles but following an in-season ankle injury, he shifted to No. 2 singles. He approached his new role like any other.
“All my teammates kept up the energy, so I just went from there,” Tancredi said. “I could have gone to Carmel, but I decided to go to Brebeuf because I love the team here. I knew either me or Will had to be clutch, and I knew I had to do it for him.”
Once Tancredi seized match point, his teammates and fans rushed the court and swarmed him in elation.
“We have two ones. They’re both amazing players, and Tony took a backseat. I know that wasn’t easy, but this is why. We knew we were going to need him in a big moment like this,” said Gill, who became the first IHSAA individual tennis state champion (Park Tudor) to also win a team state as a coach. “They knew it. They knew it had been 50 years, and I knew just a couple of weeks ago, so that’s good I didn’t know it before that.”
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IHSAA boys tennis: Brebeuf wins first state championship in 51 years
