Patriots win pair

It certainly wasn’t a sleepy Saturday morning for the Patriots.

Jay County High School boys tennis had to labor for a pair of match victories while hosting the Patriot Invitational, but ultimately found a way, edging the Evansville Central Bears 3-2 before topping the Elwood Panthers 4-1.

“I thought it was a good day, in parts,” said Jay County coach Donald Gillespie. “There were some moments that we were a little leery, but kids come through.”

Early in the initial match against Evansville Central, there were no guarantees that the Patriots (8-4) would prevail. While Henry Dirksen cruised to a 6-1, 6-2 win over Conor Hoover at No. 2 singles, the Patriot lead didn’t last long.

The Bears pushed Jay County to the brink when they put the next two points on the board as Wyatt Plisky blitzed Paul Dirksen, 6-1, 6-1 at No. 1 singles before Sawyer Plisky and Jack Ungethiem downed Alex Miller and Kadyn Carpenter, 6-3, 6-3 at No. 1 doubles.

That left the No. 2 doubles tandem of Brock Wasson and Gabe Overton with its back to the wall, especially after dropping the first set to Jaxon Trautvetter and Jayden Guin, 6-2.

“Coach talked to us, and he was basically saying that (we were) playing scared and shouldn’t be losing by that much,” Overton said. “So we kind of just flipped a switch and changed our mentality right there.”

Empowered by the mental transition, Wasson and Overton rallied in set two, earning three breaks. The third one came in the clinching game, when Overton finished off the set with a massive charging forehand to cement the 6-2 set win.

With Jay County’s Clark Wellman firmly in command of his No. 3 singles match, Wasson and Overton knew that the team’s fate rested on their shoulders as they headed into a super tiebreaker.

“Coach came up and told us that we needed to win that one if we wanted a chance to win,” Wasson said. “So we knew what was at stake.”

The duo shone under pressure, with a pair of mini breaks giving Jay County a 5-2 edge they would never relinquish. An Overton lob that the Bears failed to return cemented the 10-3 tiebreaker win.

“In the tiebreaker, we had all of the momentum we had, so we were rolling and rolling,” Overton said. “And we just tried to stay hype right there, and just keep it. Try not to get scared, try not to get down, just keep going.”

Moments later, Wellman finished off a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Ryland Oglesby to complete the Patriots’ win.

While the successes of Wellman and the No. 2 doubles pair propelled the Patriots to one victory, they immediately had to recalibrate, taking on Elwood in the second half of the twin bill.

While Miller and Carpenter were again dispatched at No. 1 doubles, this time in 6-1, 6-0 fashion by Liam Cannon and Jackson Gordon, the singles courts swiftly secured the Patriot triumph.

Henry Dirksen became the only Patriot to win two singles matches on the day, vanquishing Kalen Leever, 6-4, 6-1. (Wellman technically also received a second win, as the Panthers did not have a player at No. 3 singles.)

After a gritty first set victory, Henry Dirksen got the second set off to a roaring start, employing a pair of thunderous two-handed backhands to break Leever in the opening game. He rode the momentum to two more breaks as he polished off the set in seven games.

“He played really well today,” Gillespie said. “That’s the Henry I’m used to seeing at practice when he’s playing his cousin Paul. There’s been a couple matches (where) we haven’t seen that, and he knows he’s better being on the aggressive side than just playing back.”

Paul Dirksen quickly followed his kinsman by besting Drake Quesada at No. 1 singles, 6-3, 6-3, to clinch the match for Jay County.

That left Wasson and Overton as the final Patriots on the court, once again caught in a riveting duel, this time with Kolin Leever and Jacob Schmitt. While the Patriot pair again lost the first set, 6-4, they came alive once more in the second stanza, winning 6-3.

That set the stage for another super tiebreaker, in which the Patriots prevailed again, parlaying a 7-1 lead into a 10-6 victory on the strength of multiple finishes at the net by both players.

In total, Wasson and Overton spent roughly three hours on the court with only a short break between matches.

“My legs definitely hurt,” Wasson said. “But when I’m playing, I don’t really feel it, so I just kept on going. It didn’t feel like that long, it felt like a quick day, but it was fun.”

It might have been a little less fun for Gillespie, who found himself stressing during the pair’s suspenseful contests, but was pleased with the result.

“Really proud of the No. 2 doubles team,” Gillespie said. “I saw some fight in them, which that’s what I’m looking for. I wish they wouldn’t go three sets, it’s a little nerve-wracking, but I think that they handled it well and I’m very happy for those two guys.”