The Columbus North boys tennis team won the North Regional with a 5-0 win against Austin on Wednesday. Pictured are, from left, Anvay Atram, Hank Lin, Parth Shah, Amrit Kar, Austin Clark, Yoki Murabayashi and Michael Crossman.
James Pence | The Republic
It was quick work once again for Columbus North.
The second-ranked Bull Dogs had no trouble in dismantling Austin 5-0 in the boys tennis regional final at North on Wednesday.
“We carried today over from (Tuesday’s regional semifinal) match,” North coach Kendal Hammel said. “The guys came out all business in each position. They did really well, played well, competed aggressively and strong. Everyone knew that this Saturday is when everything really counts. We‘ve got to be ready for that.”
The Bull Dogs (21-1) have a date with semistate host and No. 12 Center Grove at noon Saturday. The winner of that match advances to the state quarterfinals that will take place on Oct. 13, also at Center Grove.
North’s Hank Lin blanked Javen Smith 6-0, 6-0 at No. 1 singles, Parth Shah topped Xander Richie 6-0, 6-0 at No. 2 singles, and Austin Clark won against Grayson Squires 6-1, 6-4 at No. 3 singles.
“It feels awesome,” Clark said of winning the regional. “It feels a little extra better this year because I’m a senior, and obviously, it’s my last year. It’s a little bittersweet, but I’ve really enjoyed it. I’m really happy for the team moving on to semistate.”
The Bull Dogs’ Amrit Kar and Anvay Atram beat Cason Swank and Brayden Furnish 6-0, 6-0 at No. 1 doubles. Michael Crossman and Yoki Murabayashi blanked Brooks Swank and Orlando Nease 6-0, 6-0 at No. 2 doubles.
Now comes the rematch with the Trojans. North defeated Center Grove 3-2 in the regular season.
“I think it’ll be very close,” Hammel said. “A couple of the matches that we lost were close. No. 2 doubles that we won was close. We won at 1 singles and 1 doubles fairly well, so those three spots will be key spots, no doubt about that.”
In the individual doubles tournament, Hauser’s Kameron Blair and Jentzen Bechtel fell to East Central’s Ian Maxwell and Noah Mersmann 6-1, 4-6, 6-1.
