Boys Tennis: Oakwood doubles duo nets sectional championship

May 20—Wins and tournament titles are priorities, but high fives and fist bumps are also priceless to Oakwood’s Oren Watson and Ronin Boehne.

“I love playing doubles,” Watson said. “I love having a teammate, I love how fast and aggressive doubles play is. And you have someone to talk to on the court, high five or shoulder bump.”

Solid doubles play is about more than serves and volleys.

“The mental aspect is huge, knowing what to say to each other and when,” Boehne said, “Being there to hype each other up.”

Communication and camaraderie proved to be a winning combination for the Oakwood duo as they claimed the Division II sectional doubles title at Centerville High School. Watson and Boehne — the Lumberjacks first doubles team during the regular season — edged out teammates Grant Zhou and Chase Crowder, Oakwood’s first and second singles players, respectively, for the title, 7-5, 2-6, 6-1.

“It’s a huge advantage that they’ve played doubles together for the past two years because chemistry is a massive part of doubles,” Oakwood coach Christy Heppner said of Watson and Boehne. “When they play smart, there isn’t anyone who can beat them.”

The sectional champs lost only a single match all season as they are 18-1 heading into the Southwest District Boys Tennis Tournament that gets underway Thursday, May 21 at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason. Both players hope to extend the season even further.

“I’ve had my sights set on state since my freshman year,” said Watson, now a senior. “I would rather be on the tennis court than in a cap and gown.”

Boehne, a junior, also has state aspirations.

“That’s definitely my main goal,” he said.

The Jacks duo was one win away from qualifying to state last year.

“I definitely wanted to be the No. 1 seed this year because it gives us the best opportunity to make it to state,” Watson said.

Watson and Oren are not, however, looking past a single district opponent. It’s a matter of taking care of their side of the net.

“They are very similar,” Heppner said. “They have incredible serves and great finesse at the net. When they are on, there’s not a lot you can do to stop them.”

Sectional champions:

Centerville swept the D-I sectional titles on their home court as sophomore Timothy Lee took the singles title with a straight-set win over Beavercreek senior Ryan Hunt, 6-3, 6-4. His Elks teammates Luke Edwards and Jake Critchfield outlasted Springboro’s top-seeded Peyton Nelson and Brady Mullins, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, for the sectional doubles title.

Alter sophomore Michael Shope — a returning state qualifier — took the D-II singles sectional singles championship with a 6-0, 6-1 win over Arjun Jain, Miami Valley School.