Spartans capture first league title since 1984
PORT HURON — The Imlay City boys’ tennis team ended a 42-year drought Monday, Oct. 5, securing its first league title since 1984 at the Blue Water Area Conference Tournament at Sanborn Park.
Imlay City, which previously claimed the BWAC regular-season dual crown, capped its dominant run by winning the tournament’s overall team title with 42 points. Croswell-Lexington finished second with 36 points, followed by Almont (32), Yale (30), Armada (12) and Richmond (9).
The Spartans earned individual championship performances at five flights.
In singles, Levi Lengemann captured the No. 1 flight with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Cros-Lex’s Blake O’Connor. Griffin Wetzel took the No. 2 singles crown by battling past Cros-Lex’s Max Noll 6-3, 0-6, 6-4, while Drew Schriber claimed No. 3 singles with a grueling 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 win over Almont’s Ethan Stacer.
Imlay City added two more titles in doubles action. Trace Dennis and Jeremy Alter earned top honors at No. 1 doubles with a 6-3, 7-6 victory over Cros-Lex’s Paiton Old and Gabe Young. At No. 3 doubles, Sal Fontana and Tristin Detwiler rallied for a 6-1, 0-6, 6-4 win against Almont’s Ty Bradley and Ayden Ferrett.
Joey Nerkowski also reached the finals for Imlay City at No. 4 singles, falling 6-0, 6-0 to Almont’s Carsen Cooper.
Cooper headlined Almont’s tournament run with his No. 4 singles title win over Nerkowski. Stacer (No. 3 singles) and the duo of Bradley and Ferrett (No. 3 doubles) added runner-up finishes for the Raiders.
Placing third for Almont were Eric Brown (No. 1 singles), Austin Machiniak (No. 2 singles), Michael Stacer and Colin DeCoster (No. 1 doubles) and Blake Boyer and Eli Bishop (No. 2 doubles).
Imlay City nets fifth at regionals
IMLAY CITY — The Imlay City boys’ tennis team closed out its 2026 season with a fifth-place finish at a Division 3 regional tournament last Wednesday.
Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood captured the regional title with 32 points, followed by St. Clair (17), Holly (14), Auburn Hills Avondale (9), Imlay City (8), Marysville, Flint Kearsley and Fenton (6 each), Yale (4), Ortonville Brandon and Armada (3 each) and Caro (2).
Schriber posted Imlay City’s top individual finish, advancing to the No. 3 singles final before falling 6-0, 6-0 to Cranbrook Kingswood’s Eli Rosen.
Wetzel (No. 2 singles) and Nerkowski (No. 4 singles) both reached the semifinals in their respective flights. The No. 2 doubles team of Isaac Lindquist and Clark DeClean, along with the No. 3 doubles tandem of Detwiler and Fontana, each posted 1-1 records.
Almont ties for seventh at regional
GROSSE POINTE WOODS — The Almont boys’ tennis team recorded three points to tie Croswell-Lexington for seventh place at a Division 4 regional hosted by Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett last Thursday.
Host University Liggett won the team title with 30 points, followed by Goodrich (17), Notre Dame Prep (16), Lake Fenton (15), West Bloomfield Jewish Academy (13), Sandusky (5), Almont and Cros-Lex (3 each), Marine City (2) and Richmond (0).
Ethan Stacer (No. 3 singles), Carsen Cooper (No. 4 singles) and the No. 3 doubles team of Ty Bradley and Ayden Ferrett paced the Raiders, each advancing to the quarterfinals with 1-1 records.
