Trojans, Eagles advance to tennis state finals

The third-ranked Center Grove Trojans and the No. 5 Zionsville Eagles will represent central Indiana during Saturday's 42nd Annual IHSAA Boys Tennis Team State Tournament Finals. The Trojans (19-2) are in search of their first state title since 2001, which also marks the program's last semistate championship. Last weekend, Center Grove knocked off No.2 North Central, 3-2, in dramatic fashion to secure its state invite. A key win by the No. 2 doubles tandem of Chris Webb and Alex Moffett locked up the North Central Semistate crown and eliminated the defending state champion Panthers. Webb and Moffett carry an 18-8 record this season. Center Grove's Justin Spicer (22-4), a junior, and Caleb Fellers (23-3), a junior, scored the other necessary match wins at No. 2 and No. 3 singles, respectively. Senior Austin Sansone (19-5) competes at No.1 singles for Center Grove. The Trojans' No. 1 doubles team of David Schoch, a senior, and Cameron Hardin, a sophomore, are 19-8 on the season. Head coach Ivan Smith's Trojans hope their fortunes will continue as they face undefeated No. 8 Munster (22-0) in Saturday's state semifinal round. The No. 5 Eagles (20-2) had little trouble against No. 11 Homestead at semistate, winning 5-0. This weekend, Zionsville runs into No. 12 Columbus North (22-2) in the state semifinals at North Central High School. Zionsville's doubles teams have a combined two losses on the year. No. 1 doubles players Joe Hammond, a junior, and Nick Laconi, a junior, are 26-1 this season. The No. 2 doubles team of junior Max Watson and senior Taylor Wong own the same mark. Senior Andrew Kahn (24-3) will compete at No. 1 singles and junior J.P Dwyer (24-4) will play at No. 2 singles for the Eagles. Conner Dunn, a junior, is 25-2 as the team's No. 3 singles player. Zionsville is coached by Dan Layton. Saturday's championship match is set for 2 p.m. with the semifinal matches scheduled for 10 a.m.