Granby Memorial's Libby Wins State Class S Tennis Title

One state title down, two more to go.

Following last season when Granby Memorial High tennis player Chandler Libby lost in the state Class S quarterfinals as a freshman, he set a lofty goal for himself: three consecutive state titles.

Libby, now a sophomore, met his first goal by defeating Old Lyme’s Morgan White 6-2, 6-4 in the finals of the state Class S tennis tournament at Conard High in West Hartford on Thursday.

“It feels awesome; a year of hard work finally paid off,” Libby said. “This was what my goal was during my training.”

The victory capped an undefeated season for Libby, who went 9-0 in the regular season and 6-0 in the state tournament to give Granby Memorial just its second state tournament champion in head coach Kevin Imbt’s 21 years leading the Bears’ boys tennis program.

“He never gives up, he’s just a fighter,” Imbt said. “He was on. His groundstrokes were great. He was very steady. They’re very evenly matched. Chandler won just a few more points.”

The title didn’t come easily for Libby, the tournament’s No. 1 seed. Indeed, he had to go through an old nemesis, No. 4 seed James Adamidis of Northwest Catholic, who defeated Libby in the quarterfinals last year.

“[Adamidis] is just a thorn in his side,” Imbt said. “He is such a steady player and he gets everything back, that’s what makes him so hard to play against. James’ defense is excellent. … The game plan against James was to go to the net and win points with volleys and overheads, which eventually worked but it was hard.”

Libby survived the semifinal match by defeating Adamidis 7-6(5), 7-5.

In the final, Libby was able to match up better against White, who is a baseline player like himself.

“They could go groundstroke for groundstroke, which is what he likes,” Imbt said.

In the first set, Libby was down a break to White early at 2-1 before winning five straight games.

Libby had to come back in the second set as well, falling behind a break and trailing 3-1 before using his consistent, powerful baseline game to wear White down.

“He’s got some of the best footwork I’ve ever seen,” White said. “I would pull him out wide and he would keep getting to it. He had great slices and I would try to rip those winners. He’s just an all-around good baseline player. … I was up 3-1 and I thought I had that game to make it 4-1. If I had that, I might have taken that second set. He’s just a really good player.”

Still Libby 4-3 in the second set, but he closed out White, the No. 4 seed, by winning three straight games.

“I knew I could make a run,” Libby said. “I started being more patient at the end and accepting the fact that there were going to be long rallies. I knew I could just grind him out.”

Libby didn’t make many mistakes, covering the court with his quickness while sometimes making forays to the net or using the occasional drop shot.

“Coming to net is usually a big part of my game,” Libby said. “Morgan has a great passing shot and a great lob, especially with the sun, so I had to abandon that and stick more to the baseline game.”

According to Imbt, as good a tennis player as Libby is, he’s an even better student, evidenced by him not playing in the NCCC tournament because he had to study for exams.

“Schoolwork first,” Imbt said. “He gets straight A’s. His parents make him work hard, both school and tennis.”

And, if everything works out, Libby could ultimately attain that goal of three straight titles, something that Imbt wasn’t eager to discuss.

“I’m trying to calm his big, fat head swelled down,” Imbt quipped with a chuckle. “One match at a time, please.”

With the victory, Libby helped the Granby Memorial boys tennis team to its best finish - third - ever in the state tournament. The Bears had 12 points to champion Weston's 22 and second-place East Catholic's 19.

Both Libby and White will play in the State Open this Saturday.