‘They knew what was at stake.’ Northwestern tennis eyes 2020 5A SC playoffs

The Northwestern Trojans defeated South Pointe 5-1 on Tuesday night to end the regular season with a 9-3-1 record. They’ll begin their run in the 5A playoffs against Mauldin on Oct. 20.

The Trojans are a much improved team from a year ago, and head coach Tim Hartis, who is in his second season as the head coach, knows the reason why.

“We have more girls who are taking lessons, going to camp, and playing year round,” Hartis told The Herald. “That is what you need to do to get better. Plus, we have some newcomers and more experienced returning players. We have a very good work ethic on this year’s team.”

Northwestern earned a playoff berth on the final day of the region season. The Trojans had to complete a match against Spring Valley that started in September but was postponed mid-match because of rain — and they needed to win that match to make the postseason.

When play resumed, Northwestern lost the two singles matches that remained, which knotted the score at 3-3. The No. 1 doubles result would decide the fate of the team.

The Trojans doubles team of Victoria Baranski and Ivanah Johnson won the first set, but lost the second. That forced a 10-point tiebreaker. Spring Valley took a 7-5 lead, but Northwestern rallied to tie it at eight and then scored the next two points for the win.

“That was the first match those two had played doubles together all season,” Hartis said. “They knew what was at stake, and they battled and got it done.”

Northwestern coach: ‘It was a challenge for us’

Northwestern finished 5-3 in region play. The Trojans lost twice to top-seeded Blythewood and swept Ridge View by 6-0 scores in each match. They beat Rock Hill 5-1 and 4-3.. They split with Spring Valley. The Trojans also beat South Pointe twice and York and Catawba Ridge once in their non-region matches, while the tie came against Catawba Ridge.

Hartis did not know what to expect this season because of the virus, the new region and the makeup of this year’s team. But he said the improvement from last year was noticeable early in the fall.

“The offseason was good,” Hartis added. “The season is loaded with matches, so it does not give us a lot of time to work on fundamentals and other things. We have to prepare for matches.”

However, he has been pleased with the quality of play his team has displayed during the fall campaign.

“We worked every day on what we could control,” he said. “We just wanted to get better with every match, and I think for the most part we did that.”

Victoria Baranski plays No. 1 singles, while Emma Pope worked in the No. 2 spot. Ivanah Johnson was the No. 3 singles performer with Lily Gangadeen playing in the No. 4 position. Rylea Stowe completed the singles players in the fifth spot.

Baranski and Johnson were the No. 1 doubles team and Laney Johnson and Lauren Husted teamed up in the No. 2 doubles.

Northwestern in the 2020 postseason

Hartis said his team will have his hands full against Mauldin next week.

“They are a number one seed from their region, and when you get in the playoffs, everybody is good,” added Hartis. “We need to keep playing with consistency.”

It has been a challenging, but rewarding season for the Trojans, Hartis said.

“We had a lot of distractions as we have gone through the season,“ added Hartis. “We have stayed focused on our goal through all of it. We need to stay focused.”