FP Boys Tennis Finished Season 8-8 after Losing to Jasper 0-5 in Sectionals The Forest Park Boys Tennis team traveled to Jasper for Sectionals on Wednesday evening. With this match being a David vs. Goliath type match, the Rangers came into this with some energy and hope. FP soon found out that Jasper was too much to handle. The FP Rangers lost to Jasper 0-5. At all of FP's Singles positions were Freshmen. Miles Rea, at 1 Singles, played an experienced Junior in Rowling. Rowling had an amazing forehand that had great pace and angles. Miles had some great strokes, but could not handle Jasper's power. Miles improved so much over the course of the season, and Coach is very excited to see what Miles will turn into in the next few years. At 2 Singles, Jace Brockman, was able to win a game vs another experienced Junior in Aguilera. Jace struggled in the beginning with hitting unforced errors, but after getting a feel Jace was able to somewhat settle in. Making games go to Deuce and getting close to winning games was a positive thing for Brockman. Aguilera also had a strong forehand with great angles, and a consistent serve. Coach Hochgesang sees a lot in Jace and his work ethic, and hopes to see a great improvement in his game for next season. At 3 Singles, Jace Betz played against a consistent Freshman in Knies. Jace had great groundstrokes and didn't have too many quick unforced errors. Even though Betz wasn't able to win a game, he was pleased to see the long rallies that Betz was able to stay in. Making games go to Deuce and hitting for long rallies was a positive for Jace's match. Coach Hochgesang hopes to see much improvement in the offseason in Betz to see where he can play next year! At 2 Doubles, Clayton Roesner and Drew Fischer struggled against two Juniors. Jaspers overheads and volleys were spot on and the Rangers could only hit so many perfect lobs. The Rangers battled and were able to get one game in the second set. Coach noticed many smiles on the two boys face, and that is what it is all about: trying to compete and having fun while doing it. Coach saw much improvement in the Freshman Fischer and the First-Year Roesner and can't wait to see what they bring next year. Finally at 1 Doubles, FP's most experienced group in Alex Fischer and Eli Brockman, the two started the match being down 1-2 and having confidence that they could battle with Jasper's two Seniors. Shortly after, Jasper took control and never looked back. Alex and Eli worked hard with Coach on deep lobs and being able to finish volleys. The Rangers' lobs were deep, but not deep enough for the duo of Levy and Lampert. Jasper was able to hit overhead after overhead with confidence past the T. Alex and Eli finished the past two years of playing together 30-7, a pretty incredible record. Alex's leadership and improvement was top notch. The team and Coach Hochgesang will miss him deeply and his doubles play next year. Scores vs Jasper: 1 Singles : Miles Rea lost to E. Rowling 0-6, 0-6 2 Singles : Jace Brockman lost to N. Aguilera 0-6, 1-6 3 Singles : Jace Betz lost to C. Knies 0-6, 0-6 1 Doubles : Alex Fischer and Eli Brockman lost to J. Levy and C. Lampert 1-6, 0-6 2 Doubles : Clayton Roesner and Drew Fischer lost to S. Brosmer and J. Springer 0-6, 1-6 Even though the Rangers were losing vs Jasper, Coach Hochgesang was very proud of his squad for not giving up and giving their all until the last point. The Rangers knew it was going to be very hard to beat Jasper, a school that has 3x as many students and has won the sectional many years in a row, but they never gave up and quit. Coach Hochgesang hopes that speaking about the IHSAA and how they need to make Tennis a Class sport will get the process to move quicker. Year after year, no matter a great record or a .500 record, it is tough for FP to have something to look forward to when they have to face Jasper every year in Sectionals. The Rangers finish their season 8-8 with a brand new lineup from last year, and hope that this year is a learning year for the years to come with the inexperienced FP lineup. Congratulate the boys on a great season and wish them all good luck in their Winter and Spring sports!