BALDWIN — Commencing its pursuit of a state title, the Parsons Vikings started their boys tennis season by claiming runner-up at the Baldwin Invitational on Thursday.
Parsons competed in the tournament shorthanded as Conner Barcus, normally on the top doubles team, was absent due to another school activity.
“Our guys were biting the bullet to just play some matches,” Parsons head coach Jane Posch said. “We backloaded our schedule a bit to pick up some competition. And we just couldn’t wait to get out there. We had the intention to try and get first place and we didn’t even realize Shawnee Mission East was there. We didn’t have Conner there, but I was pretty pleased with how we did.”
Parsons scored 51 points to place second in the loaded field. Shawnee Mission East won the tournament with 54 points while Valley Center was third with 31 points.
Wyatt Shultz, the reigning runner- up in Class 4A singles, won the No. 1 singles division with a perfect 5-0 record. Shultz took down Shawnee Mission East’s Stephen Bubb, 8-5, in the championship match.
“He was playing tight, but then he came back and had a huge win,” Posch said. “That’ll set him up for having a lot of confidence.”
Shultz bears the heaviest weight of expectations on the Vikings’ roster with back-to-back runner-up finishes at state in singles.
“There’s a few things he’s been working on,” Posch said. “He’s wanted to make his backhand stronger. He’s got a better serve and he’s worked very hard at his game to get where he’s at.”
Tanner Nolting won the No. 2 singles bracket for Parsons, going 5-0 with an 8-4 win over Ozzy Abdullayev of Shawnee Mission East in the title match.
“When we were done, I told Tanner that he looked like his sophomore self, only better,” Posch said. “He’s playing with a lot of confidence. He had a very good day. I was pleased with how he played. He struggled last year, but that was mostly because of back issues. So far, he’s physically in pretty good shape.”
Davion Holman and Mason Morris claimed third in the No. 1 doubles division, going 3-1 in pool play before winning the third-place match over Basehor-Linwood, 8-1.
“They had a great day,” Posch said. “They were up 4-1 on Shawnee Mission and they just caught us and we panicked. That was a match that’ll help them the rest of the season. They’re a very good team and very good players. They showed a lot in their matches that they played. They didn’t have any trouble playing at No. 1. You just can’t play everybody at No. 1.”
Cole Kennett, playing with Kai Gregory who subbed for Barcus, finished second at No. 2 doubles. After going 4-0 in pool play, the Parsons duo fell in the championship match, 8-7 (2), to Shawnee Mission East.
Gregory’s ability to slide into the lineup and keep the Vikings at top-tier level impressed Posch.
“Kai is right there and so is Alex Hicks — those two guys win at No. 1 and No. 2 singles at most of the tournaments they play,” Posch said. “We’ve got two guys behind our six and we can throw them into any match. They won’t struggle.”
Parsons enters the season with lofty goals — the Vikings are runaway favorites to win the SEK League and regional titles and will be on the shortlist for a team title at state.
“We have very high expectations and our guys are up for it,” Posch said. “When we went to Baldwin, we knew we were a good team. It’s going to be tough down the road, because we’ll have to handle a tougher schedule. But in the long run, that’s going to help us be tougher with the matches that count at the end of the season.”
