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Valpo’s Gardner has mixed reunion at YSU
On the court, Poland grad lost to YSU friend
By Steve Wilaj
YOUNGSTOWN
Valparaiso freshman tennis player Garrett Gardner was ready for his homecoming.
In anticipation of the Crusader’s Sunday matchup with Youngstown State at the YSU Tennis Courts, the 2014 Poland High graduate texted all of his high school friends to come out and watch. Many were there, along with a large group of his family members.
However, Gardner wasn’t exactly ready for a matchup against a particular friend who he calls “the brother I never had.”
Playing in the No. 3 singles, Gardner fell 6-3, 6-3 in two sets to YSU’s Silviu Mistreanu.
The YSU senior usually plays at No. 4, but replaced injured Penguins No. 3 regular Bassem El Mekawi. It was the lone Penguins win as Valpo defeated YSU, 6-1.
Gardner and Mistreanu go way back. The two struck up a friendship during Gardner’s freshman year at Poland when he met Mistreanu at a YSU practice. They’ve been close ever since.
“We started playing together and then, all through my high school career, he supported me and came to a few of my matches,” said Gardner, a two-time Vindicator boys tennis player of the year. “He’s honestly been like a coach.
“So the toughest thing for me today was playing Silviu. It was awesome to play in front of the home crowd. Nothing beats home. But it was all mental for me and I just couldn’t get over the hump.”
The Iasi, Romania native shared those feelings.
“I felt bad playing him because we grew up together and practiced together,” Mistreanu said. “His family is like my family. So it was tough, but fun at the same time.”
With the loss, Gardner — who won his doubles match, 6-1, with teammate Lucas Waak — is 13-7 this season (2-3 in the Horizon League). The former Bulldog who represented Poland three times at the state tournament is pleased with his debut college campaign.
“I think I’m doing what I should be doing,” Gardner said. “I’m winning some big matches here and there. My game is starting to drop off just a little bit right now because it’s such a long and grueling season.
“But I’m just a lot more consistent since high school. I’ve been doing a lot more lifting this year, so I’m stronger and I’m adding some speed to the serve. So it’s going well.”
Valpo coach Jim Daugherty said the 5-foot-10 freshman has even been a bit of a surprise for the Crusaders (20-5, 3-1).
“We didn’t expect him to play as high in the lineup, but he’s proven himself,” Daugherty said. “He’s just a very fierce competitor. Plus, he’s very athletic and has a great game, so I think his ceiling is high.”
Next up for Gardner and the Valpo men is the conference tournament beginning on Friday. Same goes for the Penguins, who finished the regular season 8-12 overall and 4-2 in the Horizon League.
“I’m really looking forward to playing next week,” Mistreanu said. “I think we’ll definitely have a chance to win the league. Green Bay is the favorite, but we’ll have a tough battle for them.”