Platte County entered the season with potentially the most talented lineup in program history. Yet, the Pirates’ first-year senior starters might have already provided the evidence to support the optimism.
Platte County senior Jaron Cook hits a serve during a singles match Tuesday against Willard at Platte County High School.
In Wednesday’s Platte County Invitational, Platte County seniors Jaron Cook and Mason McBratney both medaled in singles, and the Pirates placed fourth out of eight teams in a competitive field. They were also on medal-winning doubles teams in the first big tournament scenario of the season Wednesday at Platte County High School.
“We’re excited to play that tough competition,” Platte County senior No. 2 Jack Forrest said. “It brings out the best in us, I feel like.”
Platte County entered the season with junior Gavin Nichols having played No. 1 for a year and a half, while Forrest turned in a strong junior campaign at the No. 2 spot. Nichols has won back-to-back Class 2 District 8 singles titles to become the first and only state qualifier in program history. Nathan Vanek, the No. 3 senior player this year for the Pirates, reached state in doubles with his older brother, now graduated, and No. 4 sophomore Jack Bralley also returns from last year’s district runnerup team.
That left two spots to fill, and McBratney (No. 5) and Cook (No. 6) have started strong.
Cook won the No. 6 singles flight from the No. 6 seed spot, beating the Nos. 3, 2 and 5 seeds. He topped Park Hill’s Jeremy Hernandez 6-4 in the finals. McBratney advanced to the No. 5 singles championship match from the No. 4 spot then lost a tight 6-5 match to Park Hill’s second-seeded Will Poole.
Nichols also finished third at No. 1 singles, hanging tight with Willard senior returning state medalist Caden Lingenfelser. The pair met for the fourth time over the past two years with Nichols steadily closing the gap.
In addition to three top-three singles finishes, Platte County placed third or better in all three single flights, even as Pirates coach Zach Keith continued to separate the team of Nichols and Forrest. Nichols and McBratney reached the No. 2 finals and lost 6-5 to Lingenfelser and senior Brigham Thedell.
Platte County senior Jack Forrest prepares to hit a forehand during a singles match in a dual against Willard on Tuesday at Platte County High School.
Platte County’s Forrest and Vanek were third at No. 1, and Cook and Bralley were third at No. 3. Both dropped semifinal matches before coming back to win third-place matches.
St. Joseph Central took the team title with 20 points, but the finish ended up bunched. Park Hill (18), Willard (16), Platte County (14), Staley (13), Park Hill South (12) and Liberty North (11) were all within nine points of the champions while Kearney (four) finished a distant eighth.
Platte County 7, Willard 2
The Pirates again invited Willard for a regular season dual on Tuesday, a day ahead of the eight-team tournament, at Platte County High School.
Platte County earned the victory this year with a dominant performance, taking two of three doubles matches and then winning five singles matches. Willard won last year’s matchup 6-3 but lost a state medal-winning No. 2 player from last year’s roster.
“We definitely wanted to come in here and get it done down here at home,” Forrest said. “We’re just really glad. We came in here with a positive attitude and wanting to win everything. I’m really (happy) with the win today.”
Lingenfelser and Thedell won the No. 1 doubles match 8-6 over Forrest and Vanek. However, Nichols and McBratney (8-4 at No. 2) and Bralley and Cook (8-0) gave Platte County a 2-1 lead going to singles. Wins for McBratney at No. 5 (6-0, 6-3) and Cook (6-4, 6-4) quickly put the Pirates on the brink of victory, and after Lingenfelser closed out a 6-2, 6-2 win over Nichols, the Pirates swept the final three matches.
Platte County junior Gavin Nichols runs over to hit a backhand during a singles match in a dual against Willard on Tuesday at Platte County High School.
Forrest dominated the second set in a 7-5, 6-1 win at No. 2, while Bralley was steady at No. 4 for a 6-3, 6-2 victory. Vanek went three sets in the lengthy No. 3 match, prevailing 7-6 (8-6), 4-6, 10-5.
Platte County evened its dual record at 1-1 in what promises to be a loaded schedule full of challenges.
Blue Springs South 5, Platte County 4
The Pirates opened the season with a tight loss in last Thursday’s season-opener in Blue Springs.
However, Nichols provided a big highlight in singles, topping Carter McIntosh 8-3. McIntosh placed third at state in Class 3 a year ago.
“Gavin’s had plenty of big wins in a PC uniform, but this was certainly his biggest upset over a quality opponent,” Keith said.
Platte County ended up with a split of singles thanks to comfortable wins for McBratney (No. 5) and Cook (No. 6) in their singles debuts. The Pirates’ lone win in doubles came from Bralley and Cook at No. 3.
