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Knights knocked out of sectional by Terre Haute North
Shortly after Northview’s boys tennis team clinched the deciding point to take down No. 28 Terre Haute North in last week’s regular season finale, which also secured the program’s second Vigo County sweep in the last three years and marked the first time the Knights had defeated a ranked opponent, head coach Emily Goff knew that when – not if – her group would match up against the Patriots in the Terre Haute South Sectional it would be much tougher to beat them again.
On Monday evening during the IHSAA sectional pairing show, it was revealed that Northview and Terre Haute North would square off in Wednesday’s semifinal.
And the results were much different than six days earlier as Terre Haute North defeated Northview 5-0 to bring an end to its season.
“We’re definitely disappointed with how tonight went. I knew it was going to be tough, but I was really hoping it wasn’t going to be a 5-0 loss,” said Goff. “And don’t get me wrong, I hate how it ended, but it doesn’t take away from us still having a great season. I said at the start of the season that all I wanted to do was have a winning record and here we are finishing 12-4. I’m proud of the boys.”
What was the biggest difference in last week’s match that saw Northview win by a score of 3-2 compared to Wednesday's sectional semifinal? A change in the lineup by the Patriots.
Terre Haute North head coach Dallas Kelsey inserted Benjamin Cadick into the No. 3 singles spot while sliding the dynamic duo of Parker Higham and Brady Klopfenstein, who were unblemished on the year, back into their regular No. 2 doubles slot.
How much did the configuration of the lineup impact Wednesday’s results? Quite a bit, said Goff.
“Their lineup change had a lot to do with [the results of the sectional semifinal], but we also knew that there would be changes and that it was going to be tougher to beat them,” Goff said. “They’re a good team and we’re in a good sectional.”
The loss brought an end to the high school tennis careers of Zac Buell, who spent the fall playing alongside Lincoln Pierce at No. 1 doubles, and Gavin Roark, who earned his spot as the team’s No. 3 singles player and then proceeded to excel in that spot after spending the past few seasons as a doubles player.
Goff said the pair will be missed dearly, pointing to the leadership qualities both showed throughout their time with the program, but noted the senior tandem also has a lot to look forward to in the future.
“We’re going to miss their leadership. They both had great seasons,” said Goff of Buell and Roark. “Those are going to be two huge spots we’re going to have to fill next year.”
As for the rest of the team, most of it will be back for the 2025 season. But unlike in past years, Goff anticipates the group beginning their offseason work much earlier with an eye on going deeper into the postseason.
“Talking to some of these other teams, a lot of their players don’t play another sport. So, if we want to compete with them in sectionals, we have to put in the time during the offseason,” said Goff. “I know tennis isn’t any of my kids’ main sport, but we have to do a lot of work. After fall break, we’re going to start. It’s going to be different this year. We want to be prepared for sectionals next year.”
With Wednesday’s win over Northview, Terre Haute North advanced onto Thursday’s sectional championship against Terre Haute South, which defeated West Vigo by a score of 4-1.
Terre Haute North 5, Northview 0
Singles – James Belmar (THN) def. Brayden Goff (Nv) 6-2, 6-0; Camden Bacon (THN) def. Derek Morrison (Nv) 7-5, 6-3; Benjamin Cadick (THN) def. Gavin Roark (Nv) 1-6, 6-2, 10-3
Doubles – Christian Foltz-Garrett Hawthorne (THN) def. Zac Buell-Lincoln Pierce (Nv) 6-1, 6-1; Parker Higham-Brady Klopfenstein (THN) def. Christian Bryan-Raj Singh (Nv) 6-1, 6-1