By even the highest standards, Battle Ground’s Gunnar Harlan had a successful junior season on the tennis court.
He advanced to the state tournament in Richland with the 16 best players in the state and placed fourth.
But to Harlan, he believed he could have — rather, should have — done better.
“When he took fourth last year, he said, ‘Coach, I think I could have done better than fourth,’ ” Battle Ground boys tennis coach Tino Fabros said. “I said really? What do you mean? He said, ‘I could have won it all.’ ”
So when Harlan, then a junior, looked toward his senior season, he pledged an end goal perhaps as predictable as it is lofty.
He wants to win state.
“He made a promise to me that he will win state this year,” Fabros said. “The standard is high. … He’s determined to be the top player.”
On Monday, when Skyview hosted Battle Ground in a 4A Greater St. Helens League match, Harlan matched up against a familiar face: defending state champion Andrew Kabacy.
And Harlan’s play was a reflection of his promise. Harlan defeated Kabacy 6-2, 6-4.
“I thought I played real well,” Harlan said. “I was hitting a lot of good winners, and was moving the ball around, so I was happy.”
However, the defending champ wasn’t at full strength.
A cyst in his right wrist (his dominant hand) had Kabacy playing below 100 percent. It also kept him out of competition last week.
But the Skyview senior needs to play in a certain amount of matches to qualify for districts.
Plus, he loves playing against Harlan.
And the feeling is mutual.
Harlan and Kabacy first played each other in an 8 (years old)-and-under United States Tennis Association tournament. Back then Kabacy lived in Oregon. Little did he know the two would still be facing off years later.
“(We played) every year since freshman year and before it went from top of districts to starting to compete at the top of state,” Kabacy said.
The two played on opposite sides of the bracket at state last May, so the only shot of them playing was if both made the finals. Outside of high school, the two occasionally meet in USTA tournaments.
Monday, the two faced not just as league opponents, but as two of the top players in the state. Which made it all the more challenging for Kabacy to not be playing at full strength.
“I didn’t think I had a chance going in, but I played a lot better than I expected,” Kabacy said. “You play a kid like that, and any little advantage they have they’re going to take it and hit to it.”
Kabacy said the pain effects “really every aspect of the game. I really can’t move my wrist at all without it hurting.”
He had it drained by a doctor on Thursday, but the pain didn’t subside. He’ll likely have to get surgery to remove it after the season, and until then, play through the pain.
And Harlan? He’s still laser focused on doing what Kabacy did last season: winning state.
“I’ve been working on it a lot this summer,” said Harlan, who is ranked 11th in the 18s age group in the USTA Northwest Section. “I feel more confident, too, and my mental side is pretty good.”
