Mayo's Bhagra, Erickson/Wisniewski are section tennis champs

May 25—ROCHESTER — Tej Bhagra won't win any weight-lifting contests. At least not yet, at about 125 pounds and still just a freshman.

But good thing for Bhagra, this wasn't a strongman competition. This was the Section 1AA tennis tournament being played at the Century courts on Thursday afternoon, and it turns out that there was no one even close to as good as the Mayo freshman at wielding a racquet.

At least not on this day.

Bhagra, using his deft strokes, keen anticipation and quick feet, was too much for Lakeville North's ninth-ranked Anthony Scheglowski in the singles title match. Bhagra walked away with his first section title and got it with ease, beating Scheglowski 6-0, 6-2 in the championship.

It was Bhagra's second straight section title. He got one last year while teaming with since-graduated Spencer Busch in doubles. Those two went on to finish second at state.

This time, Bhagra would love to finish that well in singles at a state meet that is June 8-9 at the University of Minnesota's Baseline Tennis Center.

He enters ranked fifth in the state.

"Getting a state title would be crazy and I know the competition is going to be ridiculously tough," Bhagra said. "But I think I can try really hard and can do it. That is the ultimate goal. I have to not underestimate anyone and play my game."

Bhagra's game is one that can drive opponents wild. It's built around patience and his ability to seemingly track down every ball.

Bhagra and Scheglowski's games were in sharp contrast. While Bhagra gets things done with his deft counter-punching game, Scheglowski tries to end points in a hurry. That starts with a blistering serve that he had trouble being accurate with Thursday. But then there are also his punishing ground strokes.

None of it seemed to bother Bhagra much.

"I was keeping (Scheglowski) deep and winning the big, pressure points," Bhagra said. "I tell myself to keep calm and look for opportunities to make balls and try not to let (his opponents) attack. I am a good anticipator and my defensive skills are pretty good. I use those pretty well. Today, I was trying to rely more on his errors. I won't be able to do that as much when the competition gets tougher at state."

Mayo coach Jeff Demaray came away impressed with his freshman star. There was nothing new there.

"Tej is just a fighter," Demaray said. "Every point, he plays like it's his last point. You are going to have to really beat Tej to beat him. He is a great counter-puncher and at the appropriate time, he'll hit his winners. He doesn't miss often."

The wingspan of Mayo double teammates Ben Erickson and Phil Wisniewski covers close to the entire net. Erickson is a long-armed 6-foot-3, Wisniewski a long-armed 6-2.

In doubles, all of that length sure comes in handy. It did again in Thursday's section championship with Century's Kian Rehfeldt and Paige Sargent. The Century duo wasn't able to get much past the Spartans veteran senior tandem.

With it, Erickson and Wisniewski are state bound for the second-straight year. A season ago, they landed runnerup to Mayo teammates Bhagra and Busch in the section tournament, advancing them to state. This time, it will be Century's combination of Prabhav Kaginele and Cameron Nelson who joins them as the section's runnerup. They beat Rehfeldt/Sargent in three sets in the true-second match.

"Our length is a huge advantage when closing in (at the net)," Erickson said. "With both of us at the net, that is a big wingspan right there. We can cover the entire court. Passing shots are not as big an issue for us."

Erickson and Wisniewski are a comfortable pair. They've been playing tennis together since their grade-school days. Now, they are taking great advantage of their familiarity as they so often are in sync on the courts.

"We grew up knowing each other," Erickson said. "In doubles, the best team is the most aggressive team. That can be nerve racking. But you trust your teammate to make the right play."

These two have certainly built that trust. Now, they're excited for what's next, another opportunity to play in the state tournament.

They're ready to do something big this time.

"We're very excited about another shot at state," Wisniewski said. "We're excited about playing in some more pressure situations and coming out on top. We think we can do very well."

Singles

Semifinals: Tej Bhagra (Mayo) def. Kade Bishop (Lakeville North) 6-0, 6-0; Anthony Scheglowski (Lakeville North) def. Mac Pilcher (Owatonna) 6-1, 6-2. Final: Bhagra def. Scheglowski 6-0, 6-2. Third place: Bishop def. Pilcher 6-4, 4-6, 6-0.

Doubles

Semifinals: Ben Erickson/Philip Wisniewski (Mayo) def. Prabhav Kaginele/Cameron Nelson (Century) 6-3, 6-2; Paige Sargent/Kian Rehfeldt (Century) def. Caleb Neisen/Zach Thomas (Mayo) 3-6, 6-1, 7-5. Final: Erickson/Wisniewski def. Sargent/Rehfeldt 6-1, 6-3. Third place: Kaginele/Nelson def. Caleb Neisen/Zach Thomas 6-4, 7-6 (7-4). True second: Kaginele/Nelson def. Sargent/Rehfeldt in three sets (scores unavailable).