In his senior season, Dickinson High tennis player Taylor Bruhschwein chose to do it all on his own.
"All of our top guys are mainly singles players," Bruhschwein said. "I thought I'd have a better chance."
Bruhschwein, who played his last three postseason tournaments with doubles partner Stephane Blanchard, decided to go solo this year and the decision has really paid off.
Bruhschwein, along with sophomore teammate Luke Van Ells, will hit the court when singles action starts at the state tennis tournament Friday at Grand Forks.
Bruhschwein, the West's No. 4 seed, plays Grand Forks Red River's Dhilhan Marasinghe, the fifth seed out of the East.
ADVERTISEMENT
"Taylor is going to have his work cut out for him," Dickinson co-coach Carter Fong said. "It's a very strong field in singles this year. He is capable of placing and placing high if he brings his 'A' game."
This year's journey marks Bruhschwein's fifth trip to the state tournament. He played singles as a seventh grader and placed eighth at state. Though he missed out his eighth-grade year, he teamed with Blanchard his freshman year to give the squad a formidable doubles team.
The duo placed sixth at the state tourney in 2004, and followed that up with a pair of state runner-up finishes. Now, after Blanchard's graduation last spring, the weight to perform falls squarely on Bruhschwein's shoulders, which suits him fine.
"I feel like I'm playing the best I have all year," Bruhschwein said.
Not bad for a student-athlete who devotes most of his summer to basketball camps.
"Taylor doesn't hit as many tennis balls as some of the other players (do in the summer)," Fong said. "His racket gets a little rusty over the summer, but he's come along and played his best tennis the past few weeks."
Van Ells, seeded seventh for the West, takes on East No. 2 seed Parker Lawley of Fargo South.
"The odds are against him, but he's a very scrappy kid," Fong said. "He'll be a tough out. He makes his opponents sweat."
ADVERTISEMENT
Bruhschwein said Van Ells' ability to scrap for everything will serve him well at the state tourney.
"He won't stop fighting," Van Ells said. "If he plays well and gets kids frustrated, he could win a couple of matches."
