The new era of blue-and-gray tennis courts got off to a successful start Monday night.

In the first match ever played on the new courts, the Delta boys’ tennis team started the conference season in dominating fashion with a 5-0 home-court victory over New Palestine.

New Pal had beaten the Eagles last year, but this time the match was never close.  Delta, ranked 15th in the first state poll, limited New Pal to just 12 games for the entire varsity match.

First off the court was the No. 2 doubles duo of seniors Brady Williams and Ben Miller, who won 6-0, 6-1.

Sophomore Luke Atkinson rolled to a 6-1, 6-1 win at No. 3 singles.  He was quickly followed by the No. 1 doubles team of senior Aaron Elliott and junior Tyce Dishman, who won 6-1, 6-1.

At No. 2 singles, freshman Charlie Vannatter gained a 6-1, 6-2 victory.

And freshman Jackson Darby finished things off with a 6-1, 6-3 victory at No. 1 singles.

The JV team posted an 11-5 victory.

Singles winners for Delta were Brandon Grubbs, Colten Cruea, Roman Ashcraft and Owen Zacek.  Cruea trailed 3-6 but reallied for an 8-7 win.

Doubles winners were Kaden Crist/Bryce Carmichael, Ayden Mitchell/Kiptyn Schwartz, Denys Krushenytskyi/Andrew Alexander, Jensen Moody/Kiptyn Berry, Drew Durkovich, Jacob Tokar, Jscob Williams/Grant Durkovich, and Hayden Case/Cooper Coutinho.

Delta did not break into the state rankings last year, ending a streak of 15 years in a row with a state Top 30 ranking.  Their current No. 15 ranking is the highest the team has been since 2018.

The team will play twice on Saturday.  The first match will be a conference matchup against Shelbyville at 10 a.m. at the Mt. Vernon courts.  From there, the Eagles will travel north to take on Culver Military Academy. Culver finished 10th in last year’s state rankings and hasn’t played yet this season.

Complete Results

DELTA 5, NEW PALESTINE 0

Varsity Singles

1. Jackson Darby def. Carson Rush, 6-1, 6-3
2. Charlie Vannatter def. Tyler Walter 6-1, 6-2
3. Luke Atkinson def. Brock Hehmann, 6-1, 6-1

Varsity Doubles

1. Tyce Dishman/Aaron Elliott def. Luke Bartusek/Gavin Berry, 6-1, 6-1
2. Brady Williams/Ben Miller def. Jackson Clark/Davis Harrison, 6-0, 6-1

JV
DELTA 11, NEW PALESTINE 5

JV Singles

1. Brandon Grubbs won 8-1
2. Colten Cruea won 8-7
3. Roman Ashcraft won 8-3
4. Owen Zacek won 6-4

JV Doubles

1. Kaden Crist/Bryce Carmichael won 8-4
2. Ayden Mitchell/Kiptyn Schwartz won 8-6
3. Maddox Weddle/Daniel Tokar lost 4-6
4. Reid Cardemon/Jason Ogle lost 3-6
5. Denys Krushenytskyi/Andrew Alexander won 6-3
6. Jensen Moody/Kiptyn Berry won 6-2
7. Drew Durkovich/Jacob Tokar won 7-5
8. Grant Durkovich/Jacob Williams won 6-3
9. Hayden Case/Cooper Coutinho won 6-2
10. Carson Mick/Graham Hartman lost 2-6
11. Stanley Hutchens/Austin Carrigan lost 2-6
12. Hunter Reed/Jonah Swift lost 0-6