Bay City John Glenn focused on Fun with Goals Accomplished, Legacy Secure
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
October 16, 2024
JT Breen and his Bay City John Glenn tennis teammates already have achieved all the goals they set for themselves this season.
The Bobcats won the Tri-Valley Conference title. They won the Bay County title. They even accomplished the goal that seemed most far-fetched at the time: Becoming the first John Glenn boys tennis team to qualify for the MHSAA Finals – they made the Lower Peninsula Division 3 field that will play Friday and Saturday at Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood.
So now what?
“The goal for me (this weekend) is to play as many games as I can and have fun playing those games,” said Breen, a senior who plays No. 2 singles for John Glenn. “The legacy I want to leave is helping everyone know that the gift of playing tennis is a gift in and of itself. Having fun is the most important part of the game, and I think that’s something I’ve tried to cement into the younger players.”
John Glenn has had plenty of fun in what coach Kevin Miller called a “season dreams are made of,” and no matter the results at Cranbrook, that’s going to continue.
Not because the Bobcats don’t care about winning. But because having fun with one another on and off the court is just what they do.
“We just want to go out there and end our senior year for tennis on a good note,” said senior Nick Naylor, who plays No. 3 doubles with senior Will Gallagher. “We want to have fun with it, and not worry much about what happens. Honestly, I want to win, but it’s just amazing that we got here.”
Led by six seniors, John Glenn placed third at their Regional, also held at Cranbrook, to qualify for the Finals. Miller admitted he wasn’t sure if that would be enough to get his team to championship weekend, and the Bobcats left the tennis courts that day unsure. They had finished with 13 points, behind champion Cranbrook and Goodrich, and two points ahead of Auburn Hills Avondale, St. Clair and Clio.
It wasn’t until Lee Thompson of MLive contacted Miller for an interview later that night that he became aware. And for some Bobcats, it wasn’t until that story published that they knew.
“Our captain (Breen) said something about it in the middle of the season, and we kind of looked at him like, ‘Yeah right, keep dreaming,’” senior No. 4 singles player Lance Neigh said. “In the middle of the season, I didn’t think we were going to get there. Even now, it’s kind of surreal.”
Neigh joined the program as a sophomore, while four of his classmates – Breen, Owen LaCourt (No. 3 singles), Collin Meyer (No. 2 doubles) and Will Gallagher (No. 3 doubles) – are in their fourth year.
Senior number six, Nick Naylor, is in his first season and playing No. 3 doubles along with Gallagher. A three-year varsity baseball player, Naylor said he hadn’t picked up a racket in nearly five years before Gallagher convinced him to play. He’s taken to the game quickly, though, and he and Gallagher advanced to the Regional Final. While Miller and Breen marveled at Naylor’s ability to translate his baseball experience and athleticism to tennis, Naylor added that the chemistry he and Gallagher have from years of friendship also played a big role.
“We’re not afraid to call each other out or bring each other up,” he said. “We’re not afraid to talk to each other. We can have a good conversation when we’re down and get back up and forget about it.”
Sophomore Thomas Dwan is at No. 1 singles for the Bobcats, while junior David Ferrio and freshman Jack Pfifer are at No. 1 doubles. Sophomore Patrick Dwan plays No. 2 doubles with Meyer, and the No. 4 doubles team is made up of junior Dylan Werner and sophomore Corbin Sanborn.
So, while half the team will move on after this season, the well is far from dry for the Bobcats. Add in a group of 45 middle school players who have been practicing under the direction of Miller and several of his boys and girls varsity players, and the future is actually pretty bright.
“Honestly, I think it’s pretty inspiring,” Meyer said. “When I came in freshman year, we barely had enough for a varsity team. There’s so many people interested in playing tennis right now, I think it’s amazing. I’m happy to be able to help out and give them what I know.”
Their goals are accomplished, and they’re helping build the future of the program. You can see why this weekend, the Bobcats aren’t focused on results, but on enjoying every point they get to play.
“There’s not many more accolades these guys can do,” Miller said. “We’re going to go to states and do the best we can. But they’ve already left their legacy.”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS (Top) The Bay City John Glenn boys tennis team shows off its newly-won Bay County championship trophy this season. (Middle) Seniors Nick Naylor and Will Gallagher have teamed up to form a Regional runner-up pair at No. 3 doubles. (Photos courtesy of the Bay City John Glenn boys tennis program.)
Built Right, No Rebuild Needed: Cornelius Taking Gull Lake Back to Tennis Finals
By
Pam Shebest
Special for MHSAA.com
October 21, 2025
RICHLAND – Once the boys season ends later this week, Roger Cornelius will begin preparing for his 50th year as varsity girls tennis coach at Gull Lake High School.
That tenure may have been cut short at 22 years, if not for the Gull Lake tennis community.
In January 1998, Cornelius’ 16-year-old daughter, Lindsay, died as a result of a winter car crash.
He had recently ended the fall season with the girls team and “I didn’t know if I could (coach) the boys that spring,” he said, still emotional when talking about the tragedy.
One of his former students, Jason Ryan, now a vascular surgeon at Beacon Kalamazoo Hospital, contacted Cornelius.
“He and one or two other guys talked with me and, if not for them, I would have quit tennis,” Cornelius said. “I decided to continue with tennis, and I’m glad I did. I found out that God was going to carry me through the toughest time of my life. The tennis community was really big for me back then. Richland, especially, came beside me and lifted me up.”
Although tennis is his sport of choice, Cornelius played football at Western Michigan University and was first hired at Gull Lake in 1975 to help with the football program. He jumped at the chance to coach the tennis team that spring and has coached either the boys or girls, and sometimes both, every year since.
He has been named Regional Coach of the Year several times and was enshrined in the Michigan High School Tennis Coaches Association (MHSTeCA) Hall of Fame in 2018.
Cornelius will lead the boys (12-2-1) to the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 3 Finals this Friday and Saturday at Midland Tennis Center. The Blue Devils finished 10th the last two years, earning eight points both times.
In a rebuilding year after losing all four singles and two doubles players to graduation, Cornelius was surprised and thrilled that this year’s team earned 20 points at its Regional, finishing second to St. Joseph and qualifying for the Finals.
At the beginning of the season, senior Peyton Orley said he wasn’t sure how good the team would be.
“Last year at the beginning of the season, we could tell we had a really good team,” Orley said. "This year, we lost a lot of our seniors and it didn’t look promising for states.
“Everyone on the team was mission-motivated to get to the state tournament.”
Orley pairs with senior Sullivan Abegg at No 1 singles and the pair did their part, winning their Regional flight. For Abegg, it was a three-peat after taking the title at No. 3 doubles two years ago and No. 2 doubles last year.
The Blue Devils are led at No. 1 singles by freshman Kade DeMaagd, whose father also played for Cornelius.
“Kade’s got the best strokes on the team,” the coach said.
Lucas Nichols, at No. 4 doubles, is the other freshman in the lineup. The other three seniors are Max Uppal (No 3 singles) and Dylan Piwko and Evan McCann, both doubles players. Three juniors, who all play doubles, are Jaden Jones, Jackson McDermott and McGuire Abegg. Two sophomores round out the singles flights: Jake Worgess at No. 2 and Jacob Nichols at No. 4.
Comparing old & new
Cornelius said there isn’t much difference between the tennis players today compared to those 50 years ago.
“I think what’s changed the most is today’s athletes have so many different options, so many different interest areas,” he said. “A lot of the kids have early college classes, some of them have to come to practice from off site and so many things are happening, whether it’s the Model United Nations or tutoring someone at the high school or DECA. I think that’s the biggest difference.”
While the boys are competing in Division 3, the girls are in Division 2, a more difficult road to the Finals, Cornelius said.
“It does make it pretty tough for the girls to make it out of Division 2 with the Mattawans, Portage Central, St. Joe, Battle Creek Lakeview,” he said.
Orley’s sister, Ava, a junior who plays at No. 1 doubles, said the girls team has already bonded.
“We build our team off loving each other,” she said. “It’s not everyone out for themselves, it’s all of us (working together). We focus on being a good role model.
"We’ve had coaches tell us how we played with class and how it’s an honor to play us because we learned from (Cornelius) that you always want to be a good sport.”
Competitive, compassionate
Cornelius, who taught French at the high school for 32 years, currently tutors French-speaking African and Haitian families for the district.
“I tutor the kids and work with the families,” he said. “It’s vastly different than what I did in the classroom. The greatest thing that’s ever happened to me in my nearly 50 years working with Gull Lake schools was working with a little African boy who was blind.”
Cornelius and some friends pooled money to take the boy to a specialist in Grand Rapids. The specialist asked Cornelius to translate for the mother that he thought he could help the young boy regain some sight.
“The two surgeries were successful,” said Cornelius, choking up a bit with emotion. "He has to wear glasses, but he can see. It’s the high watermark of my life.”
That compassion is visible on the tennis courts, said retired Allegan coach Gary Ellis, now a volunteer assistant tennis coach at the school.
“I’ve known Roger since 1977,” Ellis said. “We started competing against each other when he started coaching the boys.”
He said that although Cornelius wants to win and likes to compete, “at the same time, he’s got a good perspective on the whole thing and the value of high school sports, and tennis in particular. He’s very positive, both with his team and with the opponents.”
Cornelius was so supportive of opponents that one year Ellis’ girls team invited the Gull Lake coach to their awards banquet at the end of the season.
“He had a conflict and couldn’t attend, but he sent a really nice letter to the girls,” Ellis said.
Cornelius makes it a point to talk with opponents, both coaches and players.
“I love to get to talk to the kids that I would never get to talk with,” he said. “My favorite is Battle Creek Central because they have struggles that most of us at Gull Lake don’t know about.
“For them to commit their spring or their fall to tennis, that’s a major decision. I want to make darn sure that after the match, I get to meet every one of them, talk with them, talk with their coach.”
Cornelius doesn’t expect this to be his last season.
“I will step down when the good Lord says, ‘I think it’s time,’” he said. “And I don’t think it’s time quite yet.
“I wouldn’t mind if they put on my gravestone ‘Loved God, Loved People.’”
Pam Shebest served as a sportswriter at the Kalamazoo Gazette from 1985-2009 after 11 years part-time with the Gazette while teaching French and English at White Pigeon High School. She can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Calhoun, Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Richland Gull Lake tennis coach Roger Cornelius hits with his players during practice this season. (Middle) Clockwise from top left: Cornelius, assistant Gary Ellis, junior Ava Orley and senior Peyton Orley. (Below) Cornelius talks things over with his team. (Photos by Pam Shebest.)