Boys Tennis Wins Team State Championship

For the first time in the 50+ years of state high school tennis tournament play, the Barstow boys tennis team brought back the STATE CHAMPIONSHIP iron.  After sectional and quarterfinal play two weeks ago defeating teams with a combined 31-1 season record.  The  Knights traveled to Springfield this weekend to try to bring back memories and to make school history.

Friday the boys rolled 15-1 Bolivar, 5-0.  But Saturday would be a steeper hill.  St. Louis Westminster Academy had played all the best teams on the east side of the state in every class, a schedule much like Barstow's own, and they had captured both first and second place in the MO Class 1 Doubles Tournament the weekend before.  The format required 5 wins for the champion out of 3 doubles and 6 singles.  

Early in the doubles competition, the boys were tied or behind on all three courts.  In #1 doubles Richey King and George Colombo stared down the Class 1 champs and broke a 4-4 tie to win 8-5 behind Richey's strong serves and baseline game and George's 'wall' of a net game.  At #2 Sunil Reiland and Matthew Justis fought hard but lost a close one, 6-8.  To send the Knights outside to the singles with the momentum, Sankeerth Gandhari and Aaram Salam fought a raucous St. Louis crowd and  an early deficit to extend the set and win, 

9-7.

Doubles had always been the Knight's strength and with only a 1 match advantage they would need to win three of the six remaining singles matches.  At #1, state champ Richey King made the quickest work and overpowered his opponent, 6-0, 6-2.  Next on the board with a W was freshman Sankeerth (Sunny) Gandhari.   Sunny used a steady ground game and strategically placed lobs to whip a strong and thoroughly frustrated opponent, 6-2, 6-0. The FIFTH POINT and final nail in the state title was provided by sophomore George Colombo.  George rallied from a slow start to win his first set 6-4, and held on with a 5-1 lead for a 6-3 victory to seal the team championship......(note.....senior Sunil Reiland, who brought his best singles of the year to the point his opponent replicated a 'Bo Jacksonesque" destruction of his racket, claims perhaps rightfully, that HIS 6-2, 6-0 win would have been the clincher had they not stopped play first set to change courts because of Westminster complaints about the surface).

The team would like to thank all of the parents for their support all season, especially these last two grueling weeks, as well as the Bauman family that came down last weekend and this weekend, Scott Hill, the Georgie Family and the three students Phoebe, Clarke and Tara L  who made the long trip to add their support.  Congratulations boys. You have earned these memories.  GO KNIGHTS!