Greenhills Takes Back Top Spot in D4
By
Pam Shebest
Special for MHSAA.com
October 20, 2018
KALAMAZOO — Winning six of eight flights, Ann Arbor Greenhills took home the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 4 team trophy Saturday at Kalamazoo College, the Gryphons’ first championship in three years but ninth over the last 11.
Greenhills clinched the title during the semifinals, but the real dogfight was for second place between Traverse City St. Francis and Allegan.
St. Francis won out with 26 points to Allegan’s 23, both behind Greenhills’ 38.
Ludington was fourth with 15 points, and fifth was a three-way tie between Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, Grand Rapids Catholic Central and Grosse Ile with 13 points each.
“We were pretty deep and added a couple singles players to the top of the lineup,” Greenhills coach Eric Gajar said of his team’s success. “A guy who transferred and sat out last year at No. 1 (junior Sahil Deenadayalu) and a freshman (Mert Oral) who came in and played No. 3.
“We got to sort of bulk up the singles lineup, which meant we had some guys in the doubles lineup who were pretty good players as well.”
All six Greenhills winners were top seeds at their flights.
St. Francis coach Paul Bandrowski was thrilled with second place, the highest the team has ever placed.
“We’ve worked hard, and it took every single player to get there to make it work,” he said. “Every single player contributed at least one point from No. 4 doubles winning one match to the No. 3 doubles winning two points.
“We had a huge, huge two three-setters at No. 1 singles (in the quarters and semis) and won both of them. It took a battle at every position at every flight to fight through and win this.”
Gajar knew what to expect in the fight with Allegan, which switched divisions this fall.
“They were always a great Division 3 team, and they’re a great Division 4 team,” he said. “It took everything to beat them. We were fighting them all the way.
“We were head-to-head right to the end. Literally down to the last matches on the court at the state finals. The last hour on a rainy day inside at multiple locations.”
Allegan coach Gary Ellis was surprised to find his Tigers in D-4 for the first time ever.
“It was a shock, but a lot of good coaches and a lot of good teams,” he said. “We know Greenhills and St. Francis are as tough as anybody in D-3, and most of the teams in D-2.
“I knew it was going to be tough. I was very pleased with the way our guys played, too. We knocked off some seeds. We won some tough matches. We had five in the semis and three in the finals.”
Third is the highest Allegan’s boys team has ever finished.
At No. 1 singles, Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett sophomore Will Cooksey breezed to a 6-0 first-set lead in the final before squeaking out the second set 7-6 with a 7-2 tiebreak over Deenadayalu to win the flight for the second straight season.
The only Liggett player still competing Saturday, Cooksey thanked the large contingent of players and parents for staying to cheer him on.
As reigning flight champ, “I felt a little pressure just knowing I had to repeat what I did, but it was a new opponent and I just want to congratulate Sahil on a great tournament,” Cooksey said. “He put up a great fight there at the end, and he worked really hard to get there.”
Deenadayalu knew he would have a tough match against his friend.
“Will’s just a great competitor, and he came out firing,” he said. “I didn’t really know what to do. I kind of eased into it in the second set.
“I started to step up more, hit bigger shots, and I started to go for a lot more on my serve. Then it started to work.”
A pair of Greenhills brothers, junior Kaan Oral and freshman Mert Oral, won at Nos. 2 and 3 singles.
Kaan Oral, who defeated St. Francis senior Elliott Bandrowski, 6-4, 6-1, went on court after his brother finished playing.
“I have to keep up the winning way,” he said. “I’ve played Elliott four times in two years and every time he comes out hitting those big shots. It was a great match. Kudos to him.”
Bandrowski, whose father coaches St. Francis, said he thought he played well in the first set.
“Actually I played pretty well throughout the entire thing,” he said. “(Oral) was able to figure out what I was doing a little bit and he was able to put some more balls in, and I started missing a bit more.
“I would say the biggest difference was him being able to put one more ball in than me.”
Mert Oral defeated St. Francis sophomore Charlie Schmude, 6-1, 6-0.
“I think that I’m really consistent and I’ve also been working on my serve, so I got a fair amount of free points,” Oral said. “Also, I think I was mentally strong on key points.”
Schmude credited his team with helping him get to the finals.
“I think my forehand is pretty big, but I wouldn’t have gotten here without my team playing good,” he said. “Last year I got third in 3 doubles. I’ve been playing singles all my life through USTA, so I like singles.”
Greenhills senior Taha Zirapury defeated St. Francis freshman Cody Richards, 6-2, 6-3, at No. 4 singles.
“We’ve worked really hard this season, and to end it on a high note like this is amazing, especially senior year,” Zirapury said. “To really end your tennis career with a state title is really special.”
Zirapury figured playing a freshman would not be an easy task.
“I’ve seen some really good freshmen,” he said. “Our No. 3 singles is an amazing freshman. Going into it, I knew he was going to be a great tennis player, and I was up for the challenge.”
Richards won five games from Zirapury, who lost only four games total in the previous three matches.
“I learned that in every match you have a chance to win no matter who you go against,” he said.
While Greenhills’ No. 2 doubles semifinal match was the tournament clincher, the duo lost in the final to St. Francis top seeds Sean Navin and Brandon Chouinard in a nail-biter, 6-3, 2-6, 7-6(5).
Second seeds Drake Rosenberg and Joey Formicola did not know their semis win was the clincher.
The doubles semis were moved indoors to Minges Creek Athletic Club in Battle Creek before the finals were played at K-College’s Markin Raquet Center.
Moving inside was a plus for Rosenberg and Formicola, who were surprised at winning the crucial point.
“I’m not a fan favorite of the wind,” Formicola said. “My forehand’s very good indoors, and my serve is pretty big, and it’s a huge plus to our game to be inside.”
Navin and Chouinard were the only St. Francis individual title winners.
They were tucked back on Court 4 at the Markin Center, the farthest from the bleachers.
“The crowd was crazy,” Navin said. “I could hear two or three people after every single point. It was great to know they were behind us.”
Chouinard said one of the team’s goals was to finish first or second at the Finals “but we knew first was going to be hard because Greenhills is such a great team.”
At No. 1 doubles, Greenhills’ Trey Feldeisen and Henry Branch defeated third seeds Zach Sisson and Zach Lang of Allegan, 6-4, 6-1.
No. 3 doubles winners were Greenhills’ Nathan Rosenberg and Finn Feldeisen over Allegan second seeds Owen Clearwater and Walker Michaels, 6-2, 6-2.
At No. 4 doubles, Greenhills’ Harrison Li and Alex Schwendeman defeated Allegan second seeds Vance Muenzer and Ben Groth, 6-4, 6-0.
PHOTOS: (Top) Greenhills' Mert Oral sends a backhand during No. 3 singles action action at the Division 4 Final at Kalamazoo College. (Middle) University Liggett's Will Cooksey makes his way to a repeat title at No. 1 singles Saturday. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
'House Larry Built' Celebrates Nykerk's Work Constructing TC Central Tennis
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
September 26, 2025
Legendary.
If you don’t know much about the history of Traverse City Central tennis, all you have to do is take a stroll through the newly-renovated and named Larry Nykerk Trojan Tennis Center.
The facility was named after the long-time coach as this season commenced.
Nykerk, whose tennis legacy in Traverse City reaches back to 1968 when he launched a brand-new junior varsity boys tennis program at Central, is thrilled and honored to have the 12-court complex named after him.
He’s proud a local media organization dubbed it the “House Larry Built.”
But he’s even prouder of the program’s rich, successful history and a label many placed on the Trojans before they were a part of a conference and had to travel a long way to find suitable competition.
“We were independent for so many years from about ‘87 till maybe ‘97, and maybe even more than that,” Nykerk explained. “We were the ‘Notre Dame of the North’ in a lot of sports because we were independent and we were a dominant state, elite tennis power for all those years — on the girls side in particular.”
Central’s girls program is currently riding a streak of 43 years qualifying for the MHSAA Finals. The boys have qualified for the Finals 18 straight seasons.
The program’s current coaches are feeling a little bit of pressure to keep the streaks alive as they see Nykerk’s name every time they hit the home court.
During his tenure at Central, Nykerk won regional coach of the year honors 28 times, was named Michigan tennis coach of the year thrice (in 1984 and 2007 for boys tennis, and in 1997 for girls), and was shortlisted for national coach of the year in 2011.
“What am I most pleased with looking back at the accomplishments for what we did in the program is just the continuity of success,” Nykerk said. “It's not just one time with a good team, not just with the guys or just with the girls, but just the overall program that was up their top five, so many years.”
Nykerk coached the Trojans to 40 Regional championships. He had 13 players win individual Finals championships, and 65 players had 100 wins or more.
He retired once before returning to coach the Trojans. Today he’s a big supporter of the program and his successors — Casey Christensen on the boys side and Lisa Seymour on the girls.
“I would consider him our number one supporter,” said Christensen, now in his fourth year at the helm of the Trojans. “He comes to our matches and watches and supports the team. He put so much work into the entire process of the renovations of the courts. I don't think a lot of people realize that he has been a part of court renovations and sport promotion not only for our program specifically at Traverse City Central, but for the sport of tennis and the greater Traverse City area and statewide.”
Christensen stepped into the Trojans program after Shane Dilloway’s seven-year run coaching the boys and girls teams at Central. Dilloway was an assistant coach under Nykerk.
Today, Christensen is humbled to be a part of Trojan tennis.
“What a legacy to be able to have his name there and for us to be part of it but also to just be part of this greater story that goes so far beyond all of us,” Christensen said. “We’re competitive regionally, and at the state level and conference, but 18 years in a row of the state tournament? I don't know if there's a longer streak out there — there probably is — but it is a testament to our program’s consistency.”
Christensen is continuing Nykerk’s legacy and the boys program’s success. He guided the Trojans to a ninth-place finish at the Lower Peninsula Division 2 Final last fall.
“We graduated a lot a lot of experienced guys,” Christensen said. “And so the challenge for us this year has been re-tooling the roster with some first-year guys, but a lot of them are seniors. It's a challenge in that we only get them for a year and the season is so compact, but it's also an advantage because when you get older guys, that comes with emotional maturity and physical maturity, too, for sure.”
The Trojans do have six players back with high hopes of repeating last year’s first-place finish at the Regional. Alex Lamphier is now a senior and playing No. 1 singles. He won the Regional individual title at No. 2 in 2024.
Holden Berry, a doubles player last year, is now the Trojans’ No. 2 singles player. Also back are doubles partners Nate Brewer and Chris Girrbach and Helly Taylor and Oliver Christensen.
Strong competition early actually spoiled things a bit, handing the Trojans a few losses.
And while they have their newly-renovated courts named after Nykerk, they’re still traveling far to play the best competition they can.
“We're not afraid to go and play anyone,” Christensen said. “And we're kind of road warriors, man. We're on the road a lot. In order to do well in states, you need to play the Ann Arbors and the Midlands and Portage Northern.”
The Trojans traveled across town twice this week en route to their 22nd-straight Big North Conference championship. The event took place over two days due to weather conditions. Petoskey and Cadillac finished three and four points, respectively, behind the Trojans at the conference meet.
Taylor and Ollie Christensen led the way winning the No. 1 doubles crown. Brewer and Girrbach captured the No. 2 doubles title, and Brady Johnson and Henry Yonts came out on top in No. 4 doubles.
“Doubles play was great for us today, but our singles contributed too,” Christensen said moments after the 22nd-straight conference title. “We got points from every play, which is, I think that's ultimately what pushed us over the top.”
Lamphier and Berry helped secure the title with conference runner-up honors, both pushing their matches to 10-8 tie-breakers.
The Trojans now have their sights on the Division 2 Regional at the Midland Tennis Center. Midland Dow is the favorite the win the October Regional. Central expects to be in the mix for one of the other Finals-qualifying spots to keep the streak alive.
In addition to Big North foes Alpena and Traverse City West, the Regional will feature the host Midland Dow, Bay City Western, East Lansing, Flushing, Midland High and Mount Pleasant.
“East Lansing got added to our Regional and they’re historically pretty tough,” Christensen said. “Midland Dow is the cream of the crop, and the rest of us are just kind of playing catch up from there. It's going to be a dogfight for those second and third spots in the region to get automatically to states.”
And while the boys get the first chance to keep their streak alive, the girls are already feeling a little pressure to do the same in the spring.
Lisa Seymour, a former assistant coach under Nykerk at Central and varsity coach at West, heads up the girls program. She took over the Trojans girls in 2022.
And Seymour is thrilled the courts now bear Nykerk’s name.
“It just was such a natural thing for them to name the courts after him because they really are, you know, his courts,” she said. “Obviously he's a legend up in the Traverse City and Northern Michigan region. Even downstate, people and coaches knew him and some of the ones that are still coaching still do.”
The timing of naming the courts after Nykerk may add to the excitement this spring. The girls will be a young team after graduating 16 seniors last season.
“I don't want to say it's a pressure thing, but it's always in the back of your head — a lot of coaches don't ever experience getting to states,” Seymour said, noting the younger players did win the JV conference championship last year. “I don't want to call it a rebuilding year. We do have some really good foundational things in place.”
Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Traverse City Central tennis players clear water from the Larry Nykerk Trojan Tennis Center courts this fall. (Middle) The facility was named after the longtime Central coach, who began coaching tennis at the school in 1968. (Below) A Trojans player sends back a volley. (Athlete photos by TC Rick Sports Photography. Nykerk photo courtesy of the Traverse City Central athletic department.)