Park Hill tennis duo causing rackets

A little friendly competition never hurt anyone, right? For Sam Barth and Mike Merchant, Park Hill’s top tennis pair, this rings especially true. After completing an undefeated conference season last year, the two Trojans met each other in the singles final of the district tournament with Barth edging out teammate Merchant 6-2, 6-0 for first place. Nevertheless, having both in the title match helped Park Hill claim the district title and both went on to qualify for the state tournament.

Head coach Ryan Kalis is impressed with the amount of work his top six players, all seniors, have put in during the offseason saying that both Barth and Merchant have raised the level of their game. Also the top doubles combo for the Trojans right now, it has yet to be determined whether they will attempt to meet again as individual opponents in the district final or try to make their run through the state playoffs in doubles since they can only pursue one route.

While Barth and Merchant are constantly competing against each other, whether in match play or working to improve themselves in practice, they’re also friends off the court.

“They’re all pretty good friends which is pretty cool with the amount of seniors on the team,” assistant coach Rustin Reys said. “I think the experience of playing together for four years has been really helpful.”

After dominating their first two matches of the season against St. Joe Central and William Chrisman, Merchant, Barth, and Brian Hillix, who also adds to form a talented mix, will compete in a busy schedule of five matches this week. While it’s easy to potentially play down to poor competition, the Trojans have a challenging schedule and will focus on smart shot selections.

“The tough thing is to keep guys focused on the end of the season,” Reys said. “Where do we need to be? How can we play aggressive, but under control? Against good opponents, you don’t get away with the things you might otherwise.”

While the district tournament is still over a month away, it will take time to decide which direction the Trojans should take. Several factors come into play in figuring out the best approach for Barth and Merchant. Reys said they’ll look closely at what kind of wins they have and how the chemistry is, not only between the two, but also among a mix of other possible player pairings they will use. The top priority is a team district title and qualifying the team for the state tournament, which will heavily guide the decision. In the end, it will be interesting to see whether we’ll see them in May as a dynamic duo in doubles or as competing individuals in singles.