Connor Larson wins first two matches at state tennis

Bison boys squad

in 5th place

after first day

LINCOLN -- McCook sophomore Connor Larson won his first two matches in No. 1 singles Thursday at the Nebraska Class B state boys tennis tournament at Lincoln and advanced to the semifinals Friday morning.

The McCook Bison boys team was in fifth place after one day at state with 22 points. Lincoln Pius X was in first place with 32 points.

"As a team we are sitting in fifth place after day one," said McCook coach Matt Wiemers. "The guys had a great day beating the teams we should beat, its just too bad we could have had any of them pull off an up-set win.

"I am extremely pleased with the way the guys have played and where we are after day one. We just need Connor to continue to play well and pick up two more wins."

No. 1 singles-Connor Larson, 2-0

Connor was not tested in the first two rounds and keeps his undefeated season alive at 24-0," Wiemers said. "He is looking forward to playing Peter Messbarger (Kearney Catholic) in the semifinals Friday morning.

"Connor beat Peter earlier in the season 8-3, so he will go into the match with a lot confidence. He needs to be patient and consistent, as Peter is not a very patient player."

No. 2 singles-Austin Larson, 1-1

"Austin had a great opening match winning 6-2, 6-1," Wiemers said. "He was very consistent and did a nice job of placing his hits leading to some easy winners. In

his third round match against Pius, Austin once again played very well, but his opponent had an answer for everything Austin threw at him.

"You never want to see your players take a loss, unless they are beaten by a better opponent. Austin has nothing to hang his about. He has had a great season and career. He finished the season with a 19-4 record."

No. 1 doubles-John Huffman/Zach Baker, 1-1

"John and Zach picked up a huge win for the team, defeating Kearney Catholic in three sets in the opening round," Wiemers said.

"They got off to a tough start dropping the first set 6-2. In the second set they recovered well and dominated play winning 6-1. The third set was tale of two tales, as John and Zach played great and jumped out to a 5-2 lead.

"Kearney Catholic made a huge come back to take a 6-5 lead only to see our guys take the next game to push the match into a tie-breaker. In the tie-breaker John and Zach took over the match en route to a 7-1 win.

"In the second round they went up against No. 4 seeded York. They had two tall players and they did a great job of utilizing their height at the net. I totally commend the effort by John and Zach and the way they battled throughout the match.

"They have improved all season and I was glad to see them win the first round match. Those points are huge for us as we look to move up in the final team standings on Friday.

No. 2 doubles-Nate Crick/Ethan Hardin, 1-1

"Nate and Ethan had a good tournament and pick up two big points for us," Wiemers said. "They had a tough second round match up against No. 5 seeded Omaha Skutt.

"They got knocked out of the tournament by a better team. They have had a great season and I look forward to having them back next year.

"They will be instrumental in our success next year and the experience they have gotten this season was a huge building step for next season.

"I appreciate their hard work and dedication to the team this year. They both have helped the team by playing in several different positions."