By RICHIE HALL
INDIANAPOLIS – Guerin Catholic senior Max Fuller gets one more day as a Golden Eagles tennis player.
Fuller is playing in the IHSAA individual state tournament, which is taking place this weekend at Park Tudor. Fuller won his quarterfinal match Friday afternoon, beating Bloomington North senior Connor O’Guinn 6-1, 6-2, advancing him to this morning’s semifinals at Park Tudor.
“It’s super exciting,” said Fuller. “It’s my first time, so I’m going to go in there with nothing to lose. Try to play my best and see what happens.”
The first couple games were close, but Fuller pulled away in the first set by winning five straight games. Fuller was rallying well with his steady opponent, able to hold his own during long rallies.
“It was a good match,” said Fuller. “He’s definitely a very athletic kid, makes it very difficult sometimes. He tracked down everything, credit to him on that, and made my life a little more difficult. That’s tennis. You go out there, you play your game and see what happens.”
Fuller also served well and had several volley winners throughout the match. In the second set, Fuller again broke away from a close early set, winning four straight games to lead 5-1.
“You got to pick your shots,” said Fuller. The senior said it was best not to go for a “big shot right off the bat. You work your way into the point. He did a little bit of the same.”
Fuller is 21-3 for the season, including a 6-0 record in the tournament. He will take on Columbus North junior Hank Lin in one semifinal; Lin is unbeaten for the season at 21-0 and received a bye into the semifinals.
There are seven players in the state singles tournament; Lin earned the top seed as the state runners-up Bull Dogs were the best-finishing team with an unbeaten No. 1 singles player in the team tournament. Carmel beat Columbus North in the team state championship match last Saturday.
Fuller said he plans to “stick to my game” when he plays Lin today.
“When I stick to my game, things tend to go well,” said Fuller. “But he’s going to throw me some things I probably haven’t seen. It’s a new challenge and it’s all about raising your level, the opportunity he presents.”
The other semifinal will see two more unbeaten players. North Central senior Alex Antonopolous (30-0) plays Culver Academies senior Tyler Li (29-0) in that match. The semifinal winners play for the state championship at 2 p.m. today.
UPDATE (2:20 p.m.. Oct. 22)
Fuller played Columbus North junior Hank Lin in the semifinals Saturday morning and fell 6-2, 6-3. Fuller finished his season 21-4.