Alex Vuchovic looked heartbroken, slumped with a towel over his head after a loss in the Class 2A state finals on Wednesday.
The Newsome High junior had just lost, 6-7, 7-5, 7-6 in a thrilling match at Hillsborough Community College to Zack Granger of Jacksonville Bolles, and the pain was evident.
Newsome coach Jim Govreau said Vuchovic simply gave it everything he had and still came up short.
"He played as well as he can play," Govreau said. "He can't play any better than that. The other kid was flat-out good, and Alex even said he played as well as he is capable of playing."
After dropping the first set in a tiebreaker, Vuchovic came back with a win in the second set. In the third, both players held serve until Granger broke Vuchovic to go up 6-5 to serve for the match.
Vuchovic dug in and broke Granger to send it to a tiebreaker that would determine the champion.
Vuchovic dropped a forehand into the net to go down, 2-3, but an unforced error by Granger evened it at 3. Granger went back up, 4-3, when Vuchovic went for a winner after chasing down a drop shot, and that was as close as Vuchovic got.
Three straight unforced errors followed, and Granger closed out the tiebreaker at 7-3.
Both players were wearing down as the match extended into the final tiebreaker, but Govreau said his player still had something left.
"I don't know if he had a full tank of gas, but he had something left. They could have kept going all day."
The Class 2A championships conclude today at Hillsborough Community College starting at 8 a.m.
3A: After living the strict life on the international tour, playing high school tennis has been a treat for Plant No. 1 player Jeff D'Adamo.
Playing for the USTA Junior team and preparing for matches in places like Costa Rica and France can be a grind. But the experiences made the Class 3A individuals state tournament that much easier to get into.
"Playing during the regular season is fun," D'Adamo said. "Here (at states), it's more business."
D'Adamo, who is ranked third in the country in 14's, had little problem getting past Countryside's Kevin Kunnen, 6-1, 6-0 in the quarterfinals at Altamonte Springs. Titusville Astronaut's Joey Jones with his tricky serve was a bit more of a challenge, especially as D'Adamo felt worn down and hungry during the second set.
Tied at 6, D'Adamo wanted to avoid a third set and put away the match in a 10-8 tiebreak. He won the semifinal 6-1, 7-6 (10-8).
The freshman will play second-seeded Eddie Majcher of Sebastian River for today's final at 8 a.m. He will also join teammate Javier Martinez in the doubles semifinals. D'Adamo and Martinez beat Brian Hendrick and Kyle Simmons of Bartram Trail, 6-4, 6-1.
The Hillsborough boys team had a solid first round in the team division, winning three singles matches. No. 2 player Kimble McKay beat Tallahassee Leon's Grant Brisbee 6-2, 6-1, and No. 3 Dilip Kamath beat Flagler Palm Coast's Greg Heartt 6-4, 6-4. At No. 4, Andrew Simon defeated Wharton's Stephen Lefebvre 1-6, 6-4, 6-3.
The Terriers couldn't pull it out in the doubles matches, though, and all three players in the semifinals lost in straight sets.
Wharton's five players were toppled in the first round, including a tough three-setter between Konstantin Lazarov and Naples' Albin Hubscher. Lazarov ripped past Hubscher 6-0 in the first, but then dropped the next two 6-0, 6-2.
Lazarov and No. 4 Lefebvre defeated a duo from Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas at doubles (6-1, 6-1), though, and will continue in today's semifinals.
