Troy Repeats with Doubles Domination, Pioneer's Miller Takes Championship Step
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
October 15, 2026
MIDLAND — For Ann Arbor Pioneer sophomore Grant Miller, it was the culmination of a two-month process where he was able to trust his tennis game again.
Miller said he didn’t have his best summer on the junior circuit, and that carried over a bit to the start of the season in August when he admitted that his confidence “was a little bit low.”
Entering the second and final day of the Lower Peninsula Division 1 Finals on Friday, the objective was simple.
“I’ve spent the last 2½ months really working on my game,” Miller said. “Now is the time to trust it. Now is the time to not worry about anything. I’ve got to go and I’ve got to trust all the work I put in.”
Miller did exactly that, ultimately riding that trust and work into an individual championship at No. 1 singles.
The runner-up last year as a freshman, Miller took the next step, prevailing 6-1, 6-1 over senior Aarav Shah of Salem in the championship match at Midland Tennis Center.
Miller lost to Shah back in August when he was still rounding into form, but that turned out to be his only defeat this season. Miller also defeated Shah at last week’s Regional tournament.
The top seed going in, Miller also earned a 6-1, 6-0 win over Dheeraj Yelleti of Troy in a semifinal.
In particular, Miller said honing and trusting his forehand really paid off as the season went on.
“That was the biggest thing for me, just building that trust and confidence in my game,” Miller said. “That keeps me more mentally stable, knowing I have that trust, so I’m able to kind of stay more steady instead of going so up and down throughout the match.”
Team-wise, it came as little surprise that Troy repeated as champion.
The Colts earned 29 points, well ahead of runner-up Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (20) and third-place Pioneer (19).
Troy rode its strong doubles teams, prevailing in three of the four doubles flights.
The team of junior Sourish Daruri and senior Jesse Hao won at No. 1 doubles, the tandem of juniors Jyottiraditya Kashyap and Siddarth Manikandan triumphed at No. 2 doubles and the pairing of sophomore Vivaan Shan and junior Stas Barodka won at No. 4 doubles.
“It’s just honestly one of those years where a lot of teams put their best players in singles,” Troy head coach Brian Miska said. “Some years they put their best players in doubles, some years they put them in singles. So this year, the singles draws were just tough. A lot tougher than last year.”
Even worse for the rest of the field is Troy should be back for more, given it had just two seniors on the roster.
“I had seven new starters this year from last year’s championship team,” Miska said. “We have only two seniors. That was our fear, to see how they kind of would respond under pressure. Give these kids credit. They really did. They worked so hard on their game.”
Clarkston had a pair of individual winners, sophomore Evan Geisz at No. 2 singles and freshman Athan Brozovich at No. 4 singles.
Ann Arbor Skyline freshman Marc Mocanu captured the title at No. 3 singles. The No. 3 doubles title was claimed by the Brother Rice pair of junior Dylan Fisher and sophomore Sam Dimerman.
PHOTOS (Top) Ann Arbor Pioneer’s Grant Miller prepares to smash a forehand during Friday’s final rounds at Midland Tennis Center. (Middle) Troy’s Siddarth Manikandan sends back a powerful volley during a No. 2 doubles match. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)
Negaunee Posts Near-Flawless Finals Finish to Complete Perfect Season
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
May 29, 2024
MARQUETTE — The Negaunee boys completed a perfect tennis season here Wednesday, retaining their Upper Peninsula Division 1 tennis title with 22 points.
Negaunee, which finished undefeated over 11 meets, was followed by Marquette with 15 points and Escanaba with six.
“We have four meets which we call the U.P. grand slam, those being the Kingsford and Negaunee Invitational, Mid-Peninsula Conference and U.P. Finals,” Miners’ coach Kyle Saari said. “This is probably the most rewarding among the titles we’ve had because we had to replace seven guys who graduated last year.
"Our No. 2 doubles (Carson Lajimodiere-Blake Holmgren) was down 4-1 to Westwood in the first set (of a semifinal) and were able to come back and win that match, which was instrumental in setting us up for team success.”
This marked the 10th U.P. championship in 13 years for the Miners, who were crowned M-PC champions for the 13th consecutive time.
Senior Gavin Saunders finished 22-0 this season, including Wednesday’s No. 1 singles final in which he outlasted Marquette senior Matt Barsch 5-7, 7-5 (7-4), 6-1.
“I just had to grind it out one point at a time,” Saunders said. “Coach always says it’s 0-0, and the second set went into a tie-breaker. This is the longest and by far the toughest match I had all year. I hadn’t played him before, so I didn’t know what to expect.”
Saunders, who will play basketball at Lakeland College in Sheboygan, Wis., next winter, was the No. 2 singles champ the past two seasons.
“I don’t think there was much difference because the competition was very tough,” he said. “This one is the most special because it’s my senior year.”
Saunders reached the title match by defeating Westwood’s Andrew Niemi (6-0, 6-1), and Barsch topped Kingsford’s Gavin Moore (6-3, 7-5) in the semifinals.
Negaunee’s Mick Kumpula defeated Marquette’s Caden Laurn 6-2, 6-2 in the No. 3 singles final, and Ethan Harris posted a 6-2, 7-5 victory over Westwood’s Jaxson Alderson for the No. 4 crown.
In doubles, Negaunee’s James Thomson and Brady Johnson posted a 6-2, 6-0 triumph over Marquette’s Billy Krebs-Lucas Belkowski at No. 1.
Negaunee sophomores Easton Guenette and Nolan O’Dovero claimed their first title in a 6-1, 2-6, 6-1 conquest of Escanaba junior Adam Prey and sophomore Caden Fulsher in No. 3 doubles.
“We were more consistent getting the ball over the net in the third set,” O’Dovero said. “I think this is a good stepping stone for us. I think this will set us up for success down the road. Going undefeated as a team is definitely good motivation for us. I think we played well overall.”
Guenette said strong net play helped them take the first set.
“They were more aggressive in the second set, then we just got ourselves together and went from there,” he added. “We re-established our net play, and that made quite a difference in the third set.”
Kolten Store and Quinn Walters also provided the Miners with a championship in No. 4 doubles with a 6-4, 7-5 victory over Marquette’s Bode Helman and Conner Henry.
Marquette juniors Abe Kentala and Connor Stade blanked Negaunee’s Lajimodiere and Holmgren 6-0, 6-0 for their first championship at No. 2 doubles.
“Having confidence in myself and my partner and sticking with the fundamentals played a big role today,” Stade said. “Our serves and net play were huge. This is a big confidence builder going into next year. This shows we can play with anybody.”
Kentala had similar thoughts on this sunny and seasonably-cool afternoon.
“This feels great,” he said. “A lot of work goes into it, and we played with consistency. Negaunee is always good. Staying upbeat always makes a difference. It helps you keep your head in the game and stay positive.
Marquette’s Chase Thomsen took No. 2 singles, topping Negaunee’s Tyler Lajimodiere 6-4, 6-3.
(Photo courtesy of the Marquette athletic department.)