Mundelein senior Austin Neumann ended his boys tennis career at the Stevenson Sectional on Friday, May 22.
But with the sun shining brightly on a warm day at the Vernon Hills Athletic Complex, Neumann’s emotions matched the cheerful weather.
“It was a fun day. I played a great match,” Neumann said of his 6-2, 6-2 loss to Carmel junior Jason Kappas in No. 1 singles.
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Neumann, along with Mustangs No. 2 singles player Matt Turner and both doubles teams, failed to win a match at the competitive Stevenson Sectional (won by the Patriots).
Mundelein coach Brian Packowitz said the team struggled with injuries and illnesses in 2015, making it challenging to field a consistent lineup.
“It’s been weird. We play in a tough sectional and conference [the North Suburban],” Packowitz said. “We have a younger team this year and for the most part they’ve improved. They are all about the same. It’s been a nice team atmosphere.”
One player who improved was Neumann. A tall player at 6-foot-1, Neumann took private lessons at the Libertyville Club before the 2015 season. As a result, he said his groundstrokes were more consistent this spring.
“When you are playing in the winter, you are constantly getting better. You are learning rather than when you take a break, it’s harder to get back into it,” Neumann said. “I played better than [junior] season. I was more aggressive with my shots. That was one of the major changes.”
Packowitz said: “The offseason is where you figure out your stroke, when we get into the season we don’t have the time to work on stroke development. For such a big kid, [Neumann] has very good footwork. What we try and work on with him is being aggressive. When you get the opportunities, put something away.”
This approach was apparent at times during Neumann’s loss to Kappas, especially when Neumann was on serve. Kappas controlled the match while on serve and broke Neumann enough to take the match in straight sets.
While Neumann and Turner (who lost 7-5, 6-2 to Carmel junior Steven Zemaitis) graduate, one Mundelein freshman represents the future.
Collin Biesterfeld played some No. 1 singles this year for the Mustangs. Packowitz eventually paired him with senior Evan Butler on the squad’s No. 1 doubles team.
“He’s awesome,” Packowitz said of Biesterfeld. “We were shocked he came out as he was supposed to play baseball. We’re looking forward to having him the next three years.”
At Stevenson, Biesterfeld and Turner lost in the first round to Carmel seniors — and eventual state qualifiers — Kevin Hunt and Mike Butler, 6-1, 6-3. Mundelein’s other doubles team of Ernie Beltran and Andrey Shor lost to Vernon Hills’ team of Scott Kinner and Harsha Namburi, 6-4, 6-1.
As for Neumann, he will not play another match for Mundelein. He graduates knowing he put in the work to be the best tennis player he could be.
“I feel good. I ended on a great note,” he said.
Kerr is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter: @prepspioneer