Category: Boys Tennis

On Wednesday, 5/31/23, the MSHS Boys Tennis team traveled to Kingsford compete in the 2023 MHSAA U.P. Division 1 Boys Tennis Championship.  MSHS finished fourth out of six competing schools.

Team Scores:

1. Negaunee – 23
2. Escanaba – 11
3. Kingsford – 8
4. Marquette – 6
5. Westwood – 5
6. Gladstone – 0

2023 MSHAA Division 1 U.P. Champions:

• #1 Singles:  Dawson Williams – Escanaba
• #2 Singles:  Gavin Saunders – Negaunee
• #3 Singles:  Mick Kumpala – Negaunee
• #4 Singles: Tyler Lajimodiere – Negaunee
• #1 Doubles:  Jace Turri & James Thomson – Negaunee
• #2 Doubles:  Gavin Jacobson & Gavin Downey – Negaunee
• #3 Doubles:  Philip Nelson & Zack Brundage – Negaunee
• #4 Doubles:  Ethan Harris & Brandon Borlace – Negaunee

Click here for full meet results from the 2023 MHSAA Division 1 U.P. Boys Tennis Finals.

On Tuesday, May 23, MSHS traveled to Escanaba to take part in the 2023 Great Northern Conference (GNC) Boys Tennis Championships.

Team Scores:

1. Escanaba – 24
2. Kingsford – 22
3. Marquette – 20
4. Menominee – 5
5. Munising – 4
6. West Iron County – 3
7. Gladstone – 2

Performers From MSHS:

• 1st Place (GNC Champion):  Caleb Janofski (#4 Doubles)
• 1st Place (GNC Champions):  Liam McFarren & Andrew King (#2 Doubles)
• 2nd Place:  Chase Thomsen (#2 Singles)
• 2nd Place:   Abe Kentala & Connor Stade (#4 Doubles)
• 3rd Place:  Seppi Camilli (#3 Singles)
• 3rd Place:   Bodhi White & Holden Hutter (#3 Doubles)
• 4th Place:  Matt Barsch (#1 Singles)
• 4th Place:   Keaton Ansell & Isaac Johnson (#1 Doubles)

Click here to view brackets from each flight of the 2023 GNC Boys Tennis Championships.

MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis (4-3-3; 3-1-3 GNC)

MARQUETTE 5, WESTWOOD 3

Singles

• No. 1 – Andrew Niemi, WESTWOOD def. Seppi Camilli, MARQUETTE, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4;
• No. 2 – Patrick Klumpp, WESTWOOD def. Elan Chu, MARQUETTE, 6-2, 6-1;
• No. 3 – Jaxson Alderton, WESTWOOD def. Caden Laurn, MARQUETTE, 1-6, 6-0, 6-1;
• No. 4 – Caleb Janofski, MARQUETTE def. John Thomsen, WESTWOOD, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2;

Doubles

• No. 1 – Keaton Ansell & Isaac Johnson, MARQUETTE def. Gabe Tossava & Mason Hietikko, WESTWOOD, 6-2, 6-2;
• No. 2 – Liam McFarren & Andrew King, MARQUETTE def. Mitchell Ford & Mick Salzuedel, WESTWOOD, 6-2, 6-2;
• No. 3 – Holden Hutter & Bodhi White, MARQUETTE def. Jayce Patron/Reid Frestaglio, WESTWOOD, 6-1, 6-0;
• No. 4 – Abe Kentala & Connor Stade, MARQUETTE def. Xavier Grondz & Damian Grondz, WESTWOOD, 6-3, 6-4

From MSHS Boys Tennis Head Coach, Karl Thomsen:

• “First of all, hats off to all the players and their ability to deal with the wind today. I think this is the first match all year that we had a stiff breeze to go along with tough oppents. Our doubles teams had a really good day on the courts. All four teams have steadily been improving, but not always coming up with the victory. So, I’m happy for their sake they were able to put a checkmark in the “W” column. Westwood has a very solid singles line-up and they were able to take 3 of the 4 singles matches. Even in our lone victory on the singles side, Caleb Janofski was able to rally after dropping the first set and win the next two sets. That was a big moment for Caleb, because his win sealed the team victory for us. With that being said, I feel like today was a good lead in to the next week-and-a-half. If tennis had a post season, it would start Saturday with the Negaunee Invite, followed by our conference meet Tuesday, and the U.P.’s the following week. I’m looking forward to seeing if our guys can keep improving over the next little bit and where it can take them to.”

Next Up:

• The MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis Team is in action today, 5/23/23, at the Great Northern Conference Meet being hosted by Escanaba High School.

MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis (3-1-3; 2-1-3 GNC)

MARQUETTE 3, ESCANABA 5

Singles

• No. 1 – Dawson Williams, ESCANABA def. Seppi Camilli, MARQUETTE, 6-0, 6-0;
• No. 2 – Sam Rivera, ESCANABA def. Elan Chu, MARQUETTE, 6-0, 6-0;
• No. 3 – Julien Cashen, ESCANABA def. Caleb Janofski, MARQUETTE, 6-1, 6-4;
• No. 4 – Caden Laurn, MARQUETTE def. Lucas Weaver, ESCANABA, 6-4, 6-7 (2), 6-2;

Doubles

• No. 1 – Evan St. Peter & Vlad Osterdahl, ESCANABA def. Keaton Ansell & Isaac Johnson, MARQUETTE, 7-6 (8), 6-7 (9), 6-4;
• No. 2 – Liam McFarren & Andrew King, MARQUETTE def. Andrew Lord & David Romps, ESCANABA, 6-2, 1-6, 6-4;
• No. 3 – Nick Chaillier & Vincent Guindon, ESCANABA def. Holden Hutter & Bodhi White, MARQUETTE, 6-0, 1-6, 6-4;
• No. 4 – Abe Kentala & Connor Stade, MARQUETTE def. Reid Brazeau & Connor Howes, ESCANABA, 6-3, 6-4

From MSHS Boys Tennis Head Coach, Karl Thomsen:

• “Interesting match today because both teams had some players out today. With that being said, it presenteds some opportunities for others. Caden Laurn (MSHS) and Lucas Weaver (EHS) were two of the fill-ins and both took advantage of the opportunity. They played a whale of a 3-set match with Caden winning the last 5 games of the third set to capture the match. It felt like one of those matches that had two winners. At #4 doubles, I was excited for the way the team of Abe Kentala/Connor Stade competed. Earlier in the year they had lost to this duo from Esky and today they were able to pay them back. I’m looking forward to seeing Esky this weekend at the Negaunee Invitational and next week at the GNC’s. ”

Next Up:

• The MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis Team will be back in action tomorrow, 5/16/23, when they travel to Menominee for a match beginning at 4:00 p.m. EST

MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis (3-1-3; 2-0-3 GNC)

MARQUETTE 4, KINGSFORD 4

Singles

• No. 1 – Matt Barsch, MARQUETTE def. Isaac Nash, KINGSFORD, 6-0, 5-7, 6-4;
• No. 2 – Chase Thomsen, MARQUETTE def. Gavin Moore, KINGSFORD, 6-4, 6-4;
• No. 3 – Cale Harris, KINGSFORD def. Elan Chu, MARQUETTE, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2;
• No. 4 – Landon Adam, KINGSFORD def. Caleb Janofski, MARQUETTE, 6-2, 2-6, 7-5;

Doubles

• No. 1 – Ben Trevillian & Gabe LaFreniere, KINGSFORD def. Keaton Ansell & Isaac Johnson, MARQUETTE, 7-6 (9), 3-6, 7-6 (5);
• No. 2 – Liam McFarren & Andrew King, MARQUETTE def. Jacob Saari & Eli Wallis, KINGSFORD, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (4);
• No. 3 – Chris Sweig & Hunter Hulkkonen, KINGSFORD def. Holden Hutter & Bodhi White, MARQUETTE, 6-2, 7-6 (4);
• No. 4 – Abe Kentala & Connor Stade, MARQUETTE def. Isaac Lebouef & Brett Berglund, KINGSFORD, 6-2, 7-6 (1)

From MSHS Boys Tennis Head Coach, Karl Thomsen:

• “Second time this week playing Kingsford and a second 4 – 4 tie. As I mentioned Monday, our two teams are very evenly matched. Being a numbers guy, I found it wild that five of the matches went to a 3rd set and five of the 21 sets went to a tie breaker. Looking at the matches, the #1 and #2 doubles matches were wildly entertaining. All four teams played some really good tennis, with high quality points, and showed that they are all beginning to understand the game of doubles. I was super proud how Andrew King and Liam McFarren battled back from a 2 – 5 deficit to take the match. In the end,it was their aggressiveness that paid off. Matt Barsch had a heavyweight tilt at #1 singles. It was one of those matches where everything clicked in the first set, but then the law of averages played out in the second set. To Matt’s credit, he settled in during the third set and pulled out a nice victory. We get to host Escanaba next Monday which will be another great match-up. ”

Next Up:

• The MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis Team will be back in action on Monday, 5/15/23, when they host Escanaba in a match beginning at 3:30 p.m.

MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis (3-1-2; 2-0-2 GNC)

MARQUETTE 0, NEGAUNEE 8

Singles

• No. 1 – Luke Syrjala, NEGAUNEE def. Matt Barsch, MARQUETTE, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3;
• No. 2 – Gavin Saunders, NEGAUNEE def. Chase Thomsen, MARQUETTE, 6-4, 7-5;
• No. 3 – Mick Kumpala, NEGAUNEE def. Seppi Camilli, MARQUETTE, 6-2, 6-1;
• No. 4 – Tyler Lajimodiere, NEGAUNEE def. Elan Chu, MARQUETTE, 6-2, 6-2;

Doubles

• No. 1 – James Thomson & Jace Turri, NEGAUNEE def. Keaton Ansell & Isaac Johnson, MARQUETTE, 6-1, 6-1;
• No. 2 – Gavin Downey & Gavin Jacobson, NEGAUNEE def. Liam McFarren & Andrew King, MARQUETTE, 6-1, 6-2;
• No. 3 – Phillip Nelson & Zack Brundage, NEGAUNEE def. Holden Hutter & Bodhi White, MARQUETTE, 6-0, 6-1;
• No. 4 – Brandon Borlace & Ethan Harris, NEGAUNEE def. Abe Kentala & Connor Stade, MARQUETTE, 6-1, 6-3

From MSHS Boys Tennis Head Coach, Karl Thomsen:

• “Going into today’s match-up, I knew it was going to be an uphill battle. Negaunee returned 10 of their 12 from last year and filled the two open spots with some pretty athletic kids (Phillip Nelson and Ethan Harris). One of the benefits of playing a strong team like Negaunee is it allows our inexperienced players a chance to see how high the bar is set. With that being said, Matt Barsch and Luke Syrjila (#1 singles) had a good 3-set match. Despite the loss, this should give Matt some confidence going forward. We are in the heart of the tennis season and get right back at it tomorrow versus Kingsford.”

Next Up:

• The MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis Team will be back in action on Thursday, 5/11/23, when they host Kingsford in a match beginning at 3:30 p.m.

MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis (3-0-2; 2-0-2 GNC)

Match 1:  MARQUETTE 4, KINGSFORD 4

Singles

• No. 1 – Matt Barsch, MARQUETTE def. Isaac Nash, KINGSFORD, 6-2, 6-4;
• No. 2 – Chase Thomsen, MARQUETTE def. Gavin Moore, KINGSFORD, 6-1, 6-4;
• No. 3 – Seppi Camilli, MARQUETTE def. Cale Harris, KINGSFORD, 6-4, 6-3;
• No. 4 – Landon Adam, KINGSFORD def. Elan Chu, MARQUETTE, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5;

Doubles

• No. 1 – Ben Trevillian & Gabe LaFreniere, KINGSFORD def. Caleb Janofski & Isaac Johnson, MARQUETTE, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1;
• No. 2 – Liam McFarren & Andrew King, MARQUETTE def. Jacob Saari & Eli Wallis, KINGSFORD, 7-5, 3-6, 6-2;
• No. 3 – Jacob Saari & Eli Wallis, KINGSFORD def. Abe Kentala & Austin Beres, MARQUETTE, 6-0, 6-1;
• No. 4 – Isaac LeBouef & Brett Berglund, KINGSFORD def. Brady Janofski & Grady Schumann, MARQUETTE, 6-2, 6-0

From MSHS Boys Tennis Head Coach, Karl Thomsen:

• “A great match up today with two evenly matched teams.  Kingsford has athletes at every flight which led to a lot of tight matches.  There were four 3-set matches today.  Although we were only able to capitalize in one of those 3-setters, I think we had a lot of takeaways from the other three matches.  The team of Andrew King and Liam McFarren had a great battle at #2 doubles.  After splitting the first two sets, that duo really put the gas down and played some high-level doubles in the decisive third set.  Over in the singles department, Matt Barsch (#1 singles), Chase Thomsen (#2 singles), and Seppi Camilli (#3 singles) all had nice victories.  At #1 singles, Matt Barsch played a very smart and steady match against a solid opponent.  The bonus about today is we get to do it again Thursday in Marquette.  In the meantime, Negaunee comes to town Wednesday.  Negaunee has a very veteran team this year, so it will be fun to see how we stack up against them.”

Next Up:

• The MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis Team will be back in action on Wednesday, 5/10/23, when they host Negaunee in a match beginning at 3:30 p.m.

MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis (3-0-1; 2-0-1 GNC)

Match 1:  MARQUETTE 6, MENOMINEE 2

Singles

• No. 1 – Brock Murphy, MENOMINEE def. Matt Barsch, MARQUETTE, 6-3, 6-0;
• No. 2 – Danny Birch, MENOMINEE def. Seppi Camilli, MARQUETTE, 6-3, 7-6 (5);
• No. 3 – Elan Chu, MARQUETTE def. Jake Schultz, MENOMINEE, 6-1, 6-1;
• No. 4 – Caleb Janofski, MARQUETTE def. Thomas Wolff, MENOMINEE, 6-0, 6-1;

Doubles

• No. 1 – Keaton Ansell & Isaac Johnson, MARQUETTE def. Kaden Bell & Nathan Schultz, MENOMINEE, 6-3, 6-2;
• No. 2 – Liam McFarren & Andrew King, MARQUETTE def. Tanner Theurerkauf & Landen Daijneau, MENOMINEE, 6-3, 6-0;
• No. 3 – Holden Hutter & Bodhi White, MARQUETTE def. Darrent Butler & River Finger, MENOMINEE, 6-0, 6-1;
• No. 4 – Abe Kentala & Connor Stade, MARQUETTE def. Dawson Bardowski & Jake Russell, MENOMINEE, 6-0, 6-1

From MSHS Boys Tennis Head Coach, Karl Thomsen:

• “Well, about noon today, I was doubting this match was going to happen because of the amount of liquid on the courts.  Thanks to Mother Nature and a couple of guys from our shop classes, Henry Wood, Bubbs, Connor Henry, and Holden Hutter, the meet was able to take place.  Menominee is a very athletic team, which led to some really good doubles at the first two flights.   All four of our doubles players on our #1 and #2 doubles teams, had a great day playing the net.  The boys are starting to get a feel of when to be aggressive and hunt a ball and when to allow their teammate to play the ball.  We still have a ways to go, but it was nice to see some double I.Q. taking place.  On the singles side of things, Menominee was tough at #1 and #2 singles, but I don’t think those scores were indicative of how close both those matches were.  Caleb Janofski stepped into the line-up today at #4 singles and had a real nice victory.  Hopefully the weather will be a little more cooperative from here on out.”

Next Up:

• The MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis Team will be back in action on Monday, 5/8/23, when they travel to Kingsford for a match beginning at 4:30 p.m. EST.

MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis (2-0-1; 1-0-1 GNC)

Match 1:  MARQUETTE 4, ESCANABA 4

Singles

• No. 1 – Dawson Williams, ESCANABA def. Matt Barsch, MARQUETTE, 6-1, 6-3;
• No. 2 – Chase Thomsen, MARQUETTE def. Sam Rivera, ESCANABA, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (6), 7-6 (4);
• No. 3 – Seppi Camilli, MARQUETTE def. Matthew Dykema, ESCANABA, 6-1, 6-3;
• No. 4 – Julien Cashen, ESCANABA def. Elan Chu, MARQUETTE, 7-5, 6-0;

Doubles

• No. 1 – Keaton Ansell & Isaac Johnson, MARQUETTE def. Evan St. Peter & Andrew Lord, ESCANABA, 6-4, 6-3;
• No. 2 – Jackson Cousineau & Villads Osterdahl, ESCANABA def. Liam McFarren & Andrew King, MARQUETTE, 6-4, 7-6 (6);
• No. 3 – Holden Hutter & Bodhi White, MARQUETTE def. Vinny Guindon & Nick Chaillier, ESCANABA, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-3;
• No. 4 – Reid Brazeau & Connor Howes, ESCANABA def. Abe Kentala & Connor Stade, MARQUETTE, 6-2, 7-5

From MSHS Boys Tennis Head Coach, Karl Thomsen:

• “First off, it was nice to see the sun and courts that weren’t buried under 1+ feet of snow. More importantly, Escanaba provided a great early season test for our veterans and rookies. In two of the matches we were able to gut out three-set wins. Holden Hutter and Bodhi White prevailed at #3 doubles with a well played third set. On the singles side of the courts, Chase Thomsen (MSHS) and Sam Rivera (Esky) provided the fans with an instant classic at #2 singles. Each set went to a tiebreak and it was nice to see Chase eek out the victory. Seppi Camilli (#3 singles) and the team of Keaton Ansell/Isaac Johnson (#1 doubles) had nice two-set wins. ”

Match 2:  MARQUETTE 8, GLADSTONE 0

Singles

• No. 1 – Matt Barsch, MARQUETTE def. GLADSTONE #1 Singles, 6-1, 6-3;
• No. 2 – Seppi Camilli, MARQUETTE def. GLADSTONE #2 Singles, 5-7, 6-2, 6-4;
• No. 3 – Elan Chu, MARQUETTE def. GLADSTONE #3 Singles, 6-2, 6-3;
• No. 4 – Austin Beres, MARQUETTE def. GLADSTONE #4 Singles, 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-2;

Doubles

• No. 1 – Keaton Ansell & Isaac Johnson, MARQUETTE def. GLADSTONE #1 Doubles, 6-2, 6-0;
• No. 2 – Liam McFarren & Andrew King, MARQUETTE def. GLADSTONE #2 Doubles, 6-4, 6-4;
• No. 3 – Holden Hutter & Bodhi White, MARQUETTE def. GLADSTONE #3 Doubles, 7-5, 5-7, 6-3;
• No. 4 – Abe Kentala & Connor Stade, MARQUETTE def. GLADSTONE #4 Doubles, 6-0, 6-0

From MSHS Boys Tennis Head Coach, Karl Thomsen:

• “New to us this year, was a chance to play two dual meets in one day. I was curious how are guys would hold up this early in the season, both mentally and physically, against a young and up-and-coming Gladstone team. Our #4 doubles of Abe Kentala and Connor Stade settled in, after a battle in Esky, and didn’t give up a game in their victory. Austin Beres stepped in at #4 singles and had a heckuva battle with the hard-serving Gladstone player. It was great to see Austin solve the puzzle and scrap out a decisive 3rd set. At #3 singles, Elan Chu rebounded in a big way after a tough loss to Esky earlier in the day. With any luck, the snow will disappear and we can continue our challenge matches and prepare for Friday’s meet vs. Menominee.”

Next Up:

• The MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis Team will be back in action on Friday, 5/5/23, when they host Menominee for a series of matches beginning at 3:30 p.m. from the Shiras Tennis Courts at MSHS.

MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis (1-0; 0-0 GNC)

MARQUETTE 7, WESTWOOD 1

Singles

• No. 1 – Matt Barsch, MARQUETTE def. Andrew Niemi, WESTWOOD, 6-2, 6-4;
• No. 2 – Chase Thomsen, MARQUETTE def. Patrick Klumpp, WESTWOOD, 6-1, 6-2;
• No. 3 – Seppi Camilli, MARQUETTE def. Reid Frustaglio, WESTWOOD, 6-1, 6-0;
• No. 4 – Elan Chu, MARQUETTE def. Cameron Mahaffey, WESTWOOD, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4;

Doubles

• No. 1 – Keaton Ansell & Isaac Johnson, MARQUETTE def. Nick Salzwedel & Mason Hietikko, WESTWOOD, 6-3, 6-3;
• No. 2 – Mitchell Ford & Jaxon Alderton, WESTWOOD def. Liam McFarren & Andrew King, MARQUETTE, 6-4, 6-4;
• No. 3 – Holden Hutter & Bodhi White, MARQUETTE def. Jayce Patron & John Thomsen, WESTWOOD, 6-3, 6-2;
• No. 4 – Abe Kentala & Connor Stade, MARQUETTE def. Caden Balzarini & Xavier Grondz, WESTWOOD, 6-3, 6-4

From MSHS Boys Tennis Head Coach, Karl Thomsen:

• “First off, I think the boys were really happy to see somebody across the net from them that isn’t in their biology class.  As far as the play on the court, it was a typical first meet of the year.  Some rust and nerves, but a lot of good shot making from both teams.  Hats off to our #4 singles player, Elan Chu.  Elan is a freshman who showed some grit in a very hard-fought match with Cam.  Our #4 doubles team of Abe Kentala and Connor Stade also picked up a nice victory in their debut.  The season is about to start moving at a the speed of light, so we’ll take a look at our notes from today’s matches and get back to work. ”

Next Up:

• The MSHS Varsity Boys Tennis Team will be back in action tomorrow (Thursday; 4/27/23) when they host Gladstone in the first Great Northern Conference match of the season.  Matches have a start time of 3:30 p.m. from the Shiras Tennis Courts at MSHS.