Conference: CIML
Coach: TJ Cox
Twitter Handle: @VHSBoysTennis 2017: 13-4, 3rd place finish at team state Year end ranking: 4 Traditionally one of the top teams in the state year in and year out, are the Tigers from West Des Moines Valley. The Tigers have only missed out on the final four three times since 2003, and captured a state title in 2010. Valley is poised to improve on their 3rd place finish a season ago returning all of the starters from last year with the exception of #1 singles player Brook Norwood. Last year was no different for the Tigers, earning a 3rd place team finish. Valley had five individual state participants last year including Norwood/Roy Jensen who placed 6th in doubles, Varun Myneni/Matt Galles were state doubles qualifiers, and Habibu Moise who was a state singles qualifier. With a veteran group, Valley will once again be a state title contender in 2018.
Schedule Analysis: Competiting in three different invitationals during the course of the season at Abraham Lincoln, Moline, IL and Ankeny all great opportunities for players to get more matches and play a variety of competition. Moline is a unique invitational where the Tigers will get to compete against strong Illinois schools. Other notable matches include Waukee and Ames during the month of April. The Tigers lost to both of these schools last year by the score of 5-6. All three of these teams will be competing for a conference championship this spring. Iowa City West travels to Valley on April 9th which could turn into an interesting match. West graduated two of the top players in the state in Jung and Schneider, and with the youth of the Trojans and inexperience for a couple of the new players, Valley could have a chance to make things interesting. Best Case Scenario: The Tigers flip the switch on Waukee and Ames and claim the CIML title. Advancing to the final four and claiming another 3rd place finish defeating a team that isn't named Linn-Mar or Iowa City West. Worst Case Scenario: Suffer losses to either Ames or Waukee (or both) and miss out on the conference title. Depending on who they are paired with at substate, suffering a loss in the substate finals (Quarterfinals of team state) and falling short of advancing to Ankeny. That's it for the first preview of 2018! Look for more season previews coming out the next two weeks, along with a 'players to watch' article as we gear up for the start of the season. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns leave them below or tweet/email me: @iowahstennis or iowahstennis@gmail.com
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