IHSAA Boys Tennis Sectional Brackets Set for Southwestern Indiana

Sectionals 5 through 12 were drawn Sunday, with No. 9 Jasper, No. 14 Barr-Reeve and No. 28 Gibson Southern among the ranked teams in the field.

The Indiana High School Athletic Association released its boys tennis sectional pairings on Sunday, Sept. 27. Schools from Southwestern Indiana were drawn into sectionals 5 through 12, with match dates and times still to be announced. Three area teams hold spots in the latest Indiana High School Tennis Coaches Association rankings: Jasper at No. 9, Barr-Reeve at No. 14 and Gibson Southern at No. 28.

Jasper hosts Sectional 5, where the ninth-ranked Wildcats open against Northeast Dubois and Forest Park meets Southridge, with the winners advancing to face each other. Jasper swept through this bracket a year ago, posting 5-0 wins in both the semifinal and the championship. Forest Park has already handled both opponents this season, beating Southridge 4-1 and Northeast Dubois 3-2.

At Linton-Stockton, Sectional 6 begins with Bloomfield against the host school and Sullivan against North Daviess, with the winners to meet for the title. Sullivan, at 12-4, is regarded as the front-runner, though 13-6 North Daviess has the talent to challenge after falling 1-4 to Sullivan on Sept. 15. Whoever comes through the Sullivan-North Daviess match appears likely to move on to regionals.

Sectional 7 at Vincennes Lincoln pairs the host school with Vincennes Rivet and South Knox with Washington. South Knox got past Vincennes Lincoln 3-2 on Sept. 10 in a match that went the distance at No. 1 singles and in both doubles flights. The two schools are expected to clash again in the sectional final.

Sectional 8 at Loogootee opens with the host school against Paoli and Barr-Reeve against Pike Central. The 14th-ranked Vikings have only two losses this season, 3-2 to No. 7 Bloomington South and 5-0 to No. 9 Jasper. Loogootee, the only other side in the field that owns a winning record, fell 5-0 to Barr-Reeve on Sept. 2.

Princeton hosts Sectional 9, where Princeton takes on Tecumseh and Gibson Southern meets Wood Memorial. The 28th-ranked Titans and Tecumseh have each won 18 matches this season, and Gibson Southern edged the Braves 3-2 on Sept. 17 in a contest decided at No. 2 singles. Both are considered the teams to beat in the bracket, which points to a competitive final.

Sectional 10 at Mount Vernon starts with Mater Dei against North Posey and Mount Vernon against Reitz, while Central enters against the Mater Dei-North Posey winner. Central is the favorite despite a 5-0 loss to North Posey in last season's sectional final; the Bears opened this season with a 5-0 win over the Vikings.

Sectional 11 at North begins with Harrison facing the host school and Bosse against Memorial, while Evansville Christian enters against the Harrison-North winner. Memorial, which defeated North twice this season by 3-2 scores, is seen as the likely champion, though North won this sectional last year and shapes up as the top challenger. Evansville Christian, 11-4 on the year, could also be a factor.

Boonville hosts Sectional 12, where South Spencer faces Tell City and Boonville takes on Heritage Hills before Castle joins the draw against the South Spencer-Tell City winner. Castle, which has been ranked for most of the season, is the favorite, with Heritage Hills the leading challenger. The Knights posted a 5-0 win over Heritage Hills when the teams met on Aug. 18.