Gallery: Wayzata Tennis Wins Section Championship

Wayzata boys tennis coach Jeff Prondzinski said his squad has joked in the past about his No. 3 doubles team’s ability to close out set and match points.

But when it mattered most Wednesday, the duo delivered.

With a shot to clinch the section championship over rival Hopkins, seniors Keton Kularni and Mike Anderson focused, handled the pressure and delivered a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Hopkins’ Kenny Novak and Andy Harris. The win was the tipping point in Wayzata’s 5-2 win over the Royals, handing the Trojans their fourth straight section title.

“They’re two seniors that played very well and clinched it for us today,” Prondzinski said. “It’s exciting for them, because they worked very hard and came through our program and became varsity players as seniors.”

The Trojans took fourth place at last year’s state meet, and this time around they hope to perhaps take home a title. They’ll attempt to do just that June 7-10 at the University of Minnesota Baseline Tennis Center.

Wayzata used its depth to uproot the section’s top-seeded Royals on Wednesday. After losing to Hopkins 4-3 on May 3, the Trojans knew they needed to rely heavily on their doubles teams to get the win.

“We had faith in Conor (Shook) at fourth singles, and we knew we had to sweep doubles,” Anderson said.

The Trojans did just that.

Jake Graven and Duncan Sallstrom earned a quick, three-set win at No. 1 doubles, Giuliano Kornberg and Matt Halverson battled back in the second set to win 6-2, 7-6 and Kularni and Anderson came through to pick up the third doubles win.

At No. 4 singles, Shook breezed to a 6-1, 6-1 win over Clay Thompson, and Scott Vezzosi’s win at No. 2 doubles was icing on the cake.

“Our guys knew they had to play well to win,” Prondzinski said. “And that’s what I told them before we started the match: We have to play one of our best matches of the year. From the top down, I thought everyone played to the best of their abilities.”

Hopkins coach Ken Novak, Jr. said the Trojans’ strength across the board was key.

“They’ve got a lot of depth, and their depth goes from beginning to end,” Novak said.

Now, the Trojans head to state win one more goal in mind, but Prondzinski said a championship won’t come easy.

“We’re going to have to get better and improve and really bring our A game to the state tournament,” he said. “Hopefully represent (Section) 6AA with some class, and hopefully play the best we can.”

GAME RESULTS

No. 1 singles: HOP Ryan Erickson def. WAY Dustin Britton 6-0, 6-1

No. 2 singles: WAY Scott Vezzosi def. HOP Michael Fields 7-5, 6-4

No. 3 singles: HOP Manfred Barrios def. WAY Nick Beaty 6-2, 6-0

No. 4 singles: WAY Conor Shook def. HOP Clay Thompson 6-1, 6-1

No. 1 doubles: WAY Jack Graven/Duncan Sallstrom def. HOP Andrew Rust/Brandon Rabinowitz 6-1, 2-6, 6-1

No. 2 doubles: WAY Giuliano Kornberg/Matt Halverson def. HOP Zach Miller/Andy Novak 6-2, 7-6

No. 3 doubles: WAY Ketan Kularni/Mike Anderson def. HOP Kenny Novak/Andy Harris 7-5, 6-4