Mahomet-Seymour Tennis Duo Makes History with First State Qualification in Program’s Third Year

By Fred Kroner

Mahomet-Seymour’s third-year boys’ tennis program produced its first IHSA Class 1A state-qualifiers on Saturday (May 18).

Senior Jacob Atteberry and junior Caleb Bushue advanced to the state tournament in doubles by virtue of their fourth-place finish at the Centennial Sectional.

They are among the 64 doubles teams to advance to state.

Atteberry and Bushue (7-9 season record) were the No. 3 seed and sailed through their first two postseason matches, recording  6-1, 6-0 and 6-2, 6-4 decisions.

In the semifinals, against the No. 2 seed, Atteberry and Bushue dropped a 6-0, 6-2 decision. In the third-place match, the Bulldog duo lost to the top-seeded entry, 6-1, 6-1.

They were the only Bulldog participants to post a win at the sectional.

The other M-S doubles’ entry, Caidan Kogut and Jack Louis, drew the No. 1 seed for their postseason debut and were eliminated, 6-0, 6-3.

In singles, Bulldogs Samuel Lunney dropped a 6-0, 6-0 decision and William Bao suffered a 6-3, 6-2 loss.

Lunney had the team’s best singles’ record (9-2).

In the team chase, M-S totaled four points and finished in a tie with Urbana for fifth place at the 10-school sectional. The meet champion with 23 points was Urbana Uni High.

Atteberry and Bushue will return to action on Thursday (May 23) in suburban Chicago. Palatine is serving as the host, but courts in surrounding towns will also be used.