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Southview brothers Isaac and Landon Vens have advanced to the Division I boys tennis state semifinals, showing just how much they’ve grown since their debut last year.
The pair opened their return to the College of Wooster on Thursday by winning two matches, including a gritty comeback in the second round. Their performance marked a significant leap in mental strength and resilience.
“Last year we were really nervous,” said sophomore Landon Vens. “We looked ahead too much and slipped. This year, we played very confidently. It was a great way to start the tournament.”
The duo will face Springboro’s Drew Baumgartner and Peyton Nelson in today’s semifinal. The other semifinal will feature New Albany’s Abhinav Dandu and Jackson Clements against GlenOak’s Dylan Wiles and Jack Slay.
Isaac, a senior, is making his third appearance at state, having reached the singles quarterfinal last year. This spring, the Vens brothers have gone undefeated in postseason doubles, winning all nine matches.
They began the tournament with a dominant 6-0, 6-0 victory over Upper Arlington’s Owen Hawley and Luca Milicki. In the second round, they dropped the first set 6-1 to Hudson’s Henrique Sa and Zelin Shen but rallied to win the next two sets 6-1, 6-1.
“We’re both strong singles players, but we wanted to get back here one last time together,” Isaac said. “Every match is competitive at state.”
Other Area Highlights
While the Vens brothers were the only local players to advance past the first round, several others delivered notable performances:
- Landon Bassett, a senior from Bryan, nearly pulled off a first-round win in Division II singles. He lost 6-3, 4-6, 6-0 to Seven Hills’ Adi Nayak. Bassett finished his season 23-5 and his career 84-19. He will continue playing at Trine University.“That was the goal coming in—just to give it everything I had,” Bassett said. “I think I left everything I had out there.”
- St. John’s juniors Miles Green and Adam Darwich fell in Division I doubles, losing 6-2, 6-1 to Upper Arlington’s Jackson Lloyd and Keshav Goyal. However, their season isn’t over as they will compete in the state team tournament Saturday.“We could’ve been more aggressive and hit our serve targets better,” Darwich said.
- Nick Miller, a senior from St. Francis de Sales and three-time state qualifier, lost 6-3, 6-3 in the Division I singles first round to Tyler Thomas of New Albany. He finishes the season 19-8 and plans to play both tennis and golf at Ohio Northern.“I was just really tight at the start,” Miller said. “But I’m happy I got the chance to compete at state again.”
- Nathan Horvath, a freshman from Clay, made his state debut with a 6-4, 6-2 loss to Marysville’s Gianni Russo.“I thought I played well, just missed some key chances,” Horvath said.
- Port Clinton’s Blake Denno and Kai Weit lost 6-0, 6-1 in their Division II doubles match against Cincinnati Indian Hill’s Michael Ryu and Neelan Gandhi.“This was the plan all along,” Weit said. “It was a great experience, and I’ve grown mentally this season.”
Denno, who played first singles, added, “I’m just glad I made it to state. It was a good experience.”
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