Josh Sang admits it’s a little less nerve-wracking being a beast on the tennis court as opposed to the stage at Carmichael Auditorium.
His doubles partner Connor Couch, knows the feeling. They joined teammate Abe Corry in the cast of this fall’s Sounds of South production of Beauty and the Beast, often doing double-double duty on the same day as Bloomington South made it all the way to team semistate.
There is no script in tennis, of course, but the duo has written a surprise happy ending to their junior season, taking a 6-0 record in the playoffs into the IHSAA state doubles quarterfinals on Friday at 2 p.m. at Park Tudor.
“It’s exciting,” Sang said. “I didn’t really think we’d get too far, but I guess we’re going to state.”
South’s has had some strong success lately sending doubles teams to the finals. In 2020, it was seniors Ethan Uhls and Marcel Borhi and in 2021, Michael Asplund and Chris Lian (who now plays at Rose-Hulman) went as juniors. Both pairs came back with third-place medals.
“The last people to go were Mike and Chris and they were crazy at tennis,” Couch said. “We didn’t think we could probably make it this far but we’ve played well.”
“They were really good players,” Sang said. “We didn’t think get that far, but I guess me and Connor really put in the work this year.”
Sang was there to root on his brother Chris, so he knows what the atmosphere will be like when they take on Carmel’s Michael Bao and Grant Mu. The winners play again Saturday at 10 a.m. in the semis.
“I watched my brother and Michael play and it was pretty intimidating,” Sang said. “I remember seeing these two doubles partners almost getting in a fight, so that was kind of weird.”
Big stage, big spotlight
While Sang, a Sounds of South veteran since his freshman year, portrayed The Beast, Couch was an ensemble member and Abe Corry was Cogsworth. And that experience was more stressful than even the three-set win against Evansville Memorial at the Jasper Semistate the morning before one of their acting performances.
“I feel a lot more pressure on stage than I do on the court,” Sang said. “Because I’ve been playing tennis longer and it’s like two whole different games.”
South head coach Matt Corry brought the two together this year. Both of them had started getting some varsity time as freshmen with Couch stepping in full time this year. So it’s been a year of building chemistry and getting a better fix on each other’s games and personalities.
“I think we’re doing the best we can at all those things,” Corry said. “It takes time, so we’re trying to grow and trying to talk more worry less about the outcome and focus more on the things we can do well.”
“He has maybe the best volleys on the team and I’m pretty tall and I can reach most things,” Couch said. “So at the net we’ve been pretty good and that’s where doubles is played.”
They’ll have a good scouting report from teammates Alex Busch and William Liao, who played 1 doubles against Bao and Mu in their match with the Greyhounds. The key thing for Couch and Sang is to stay within themselves.
“I think sometimes we feel like we have to play out of our mind to achieve certain things,” Corry said. “So we’re trying to help them find comfort in doing the things they do well and discipline-wise and trying also to keep cranking at some of the tools we can utilize a little bit this weekend.”
‘Just play loose’
Couch and Sang are 13-2 overall together, the losses both coming at 2 doubles to Carmel and Jasper, and they’ve won six straight, including a pair of three-setters in the postseason. So they are battle-tested.
“They’ve had to claw their way here,” Corry said. “So I’m just wanting them to be proud of the climb and know that it’s not a failure or success based on the outcomes, it’s based on that they were able to give themselves the opportunity.
“We want to make it smaller and find some enjoyment. This is a team achievement that all eight varsity guys have been a part of.”
The juxtaposition of their acting and playing careers matches their different strengths as players.
“He’s definitely the more positive one,” Couch said. “It’s something where I get in my head too easily and he’s always there to pick me back up out of that.
“But I’d say when things are going well, I get more passionate and he’s a little bit more subdued when he’s under pressure so my fire can help this guy and we both play better.”
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Couch sees them as underdogs on paper, so “playing loose” is how they plan to ease the pressure of the moment. Maybe it will help bring out the beast in both of them.
“They are very different guys,” Corry said. “Both of them are quiet and reserved so we’re trying to get them out of their comfort zone in that way.
“The Sounds of South connection is a good thing and it’s funny to see the difference when they’re on stage compared to being in tennis mode. The tennis certainly brings out more intense emotions.”
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: South’s Josh Sang, Connor Couch ready for encore at state tennis
