By ANDREW CHERNOFF
WISH-TV | wishtv.com
The Carmel High School boys tennis team is off to a strong start this season. The Greyhounds are ranked No. 1 in the Indiana High School Tennis Coaches Association poll.
The following are the top five of this week’s poll:
- Carmel
- Brebeuf
- Columbus North
- Homestead
- Zionsville
“The guys are hungry, very hungry,” Carmel boys tennis head coach Dan Brunette said. “The practices have been very crisp, sharp. Guys are pushing each other in the right way. A lot of competition in practice.”
Carmel had won six straight state titles before falling to Harrison (West Lafayette) in the regional championship of last year’s tournament.
North Central ultimately won the state title in 2022.
“We try not to talk about what happened last year,” Brunette said. “But at the same time, I think everyone knows in the back of their head, we’re not going to take anything lightly. Every day is a fight at practice. Every day, we’ve got to push each other.”
Brunette is no stranger to winning state championships. He led North Central to three state championship victories during his tenure as the Panthers’ tennis head coach.
He is hoping to do the same at Carmel.
“It’s been really enjoyable,” Brunette said. “And we’ve got a lot of kids that are good at tennis, and also good people and great students. And so, I’m blessed with that.”
Brunette became Carmel’s head coach prior to the 2022 season.
The current group of Greyhounds know though they have a target on their backs, especially as the No. 1 team in the state.
Plus, they have a tough schedule. For instance, this week alone, the Greyhounds will play at Guerin Catholic, at home against Park Tudor and at Zionsville in the Zionsville Invitational.
“At North Central, we always played the hardest schedule we could and at Carmel it’s been the exact same,” Burnette said. “You’re obviously looking at matchups, trying to figure out not only the temperament of your own players and how they’re going to deal with pressure and adversity, but also see where you can put the pieces of the puzzle best in order to be competitive in every single match.”
Click here to watch Brunette’s conversation with News 8 Sports’ Andrew Chernoff on this past week’s episode of “The Zone Extra.”