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With the 2025 high school boys tennis season upon us, here is a look at the seasons ahead for the Streator Bulldogs and Ottawa Pirates.
Ottawa
Coach: Matt Gross (25th season)
Last season: 8-16 overall dual record, 2-3 Interstate 8
Top returning players: Evan Krafft, jr.; Ayden Sexton, jr.; Noah Gross, sr.; Collin Olszewski, sr.; Kaden Araujo, jr.; Landon Sawin, sr.; Caden Walter, sr.; Tucker Ditchfield, sr.
Top newcomers: Ian Fulkerson, so.; Gabe Zeglis, so.
Worth noting: Lingering injuries across the board made for an unusually quiet season for the area powerhouse Pirates program, though Krafft (along with the graduated Alan Sifuentes) did score a third-place finish in sectionals to give Ottawa another entrant in the IHSA State Tournament. While it’s still early to fill out any lineup cards in ink, coach Gross is expecting Krafft and the returning-from-injury Noah Gross –himself a sectional doubles champ in 2023 – to form a potent No. 1 doubles tandem. There is a lot of talent behind those top two, however, including a pair of sophomores who will push their upperclass teammates for varsity playing time. “Our strength will be our depth on the varsity level,” Coach Gross said. “We don’t have a bunch of guys, but we have a number of guys whose abilities are very close. They are also very excited to get the season started. It’s still very early yet, so we’re still trying combinations out for doubles and seeing who will be more suited for singles.” Ottawa is scheduled to open the season this weekend in the Troy Triad Invitational and next weekend in the Metamora Invitational before the home opener April 2 against Pontiac. Expectations are, per usual, high. “After a rough season last year with health issues, we hope this year that the guys are able to avoid injury and are able to play the entire season comfortably,” Coach Gross said. “We want to be competitive in the conference and see guys playing at state. We are excited for all of our guys and looking forward to where this season will take them.”
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Streator
Coach: Rob Beck (12th season)
Last season: 3-10 overall dual record
Top returning players: Ryan Beck, sr.; Brad Minick, sr.; Clayton Lehman, sr.; Tyler Barbee, sr.; Devin Thompson, sr.
Top newcomers: Lucas Gutierrez, fr.; Jacob Wang, fr.; Quinn Baron, fr.
Worth noting: Ryan Beck and Minick split No. 1 singles duties for the Bulldogs last year, as the former spent some time in doubles play where he eventually participated in sectionals, just missing a state-qualifying finish. Ryan Beck was 6-2 in singles play in 2024, while Minick was 8-12 splitting time between the No. 1 and 2 spots. Lehman, too, shared time between being a varsity singles and doubles player, so between those three the two singles spots should be ably filled by experienced hands. Minick and Lehman seem likely to team up with Thompson at No. 1 doubles, while Barbee teams with one of the three freshmen playing up at No. 2 and the other freshmen handle the No. 3 spot. The years of matches under the belts of the three battle-tested seniors should be a team strength. “[Our goal is] to be as competitive as possible,” said Coach Beck, in his second tenure leading the program “We have experience at the top of the lineup, which I would like to translate into wins. Our freshmen have been improving each day, and I am looking forward to them getting match experience and building upon that.” The Bulldogs are scheduled to open the season at La Salle-Peru on March 31 before their home opener against Rochelle on April 3.