What a season.
As I reflect on our 2025 campaign, I’m filled with immense pride. This year’s MICDS Boys Tennis team accomplished something truly special: we went undefeated and brought home the Class 2 State Championship—our second straight team title—and completed a rare and remarkable “triple crown” for our program.
Our championship run culminated in a 5-1 victory over Parkway West at the Cooper Tennis Complex in Springfield on May 23. That win sealed not only the title but also capped off the first undefeated season in my 25 years of coaching Boys Tennis at MICDS. We have been fortunate to have some outstanding teams, but this one—due to its discipline, unity, and complete dominance throughout the season—ranks among the very best.
We earned the nickname “road warriors” this year, and deservedly so. With our home courts under renovation, we played every match on the road. That never fazed our guys. In fact, I think it made us even tougher. Every match was an away match, every win hard-earned. We returned our top four players from last year’s championship team and built on that foundation. Strategic preseason adjustments to our doubles pairings paid off, as we consistently jumped out to leads after doubles play, which gave us tremendous momentum in dual matches all year long.
In the state final, we took two of three doubles matches—Owen Kizer ’26 and Jai Patel ’25 were rock-solid at No. 1, while Arjun Puri ’25 and Max Padratzik ’27 clinched a critical point at No. 2. In singles, Patel, Puri, and Padratzik each delivered strong performances to close out the championship.
One of the highlights of the season came the week before team state, when Kizer won the Class 2 Singles State Title, and Patel and Puri took the Class 2 Doubles Title, completing that elusive triple crown: individual singles, individual doubles, and team titles all in one season. That’s a testament to the quality and depth of our squad.
What might get overlooked in the spotlight of team and individual state titles is the strength of our entire ladder. Amey Parwal ’27 won the Metro League Tournament at #6 singles, showing how deep and competitive our team was from top to bottom. Newcomer this year as a freshman was Reid Caruthers ’28, anchoring the team at #5 singles and gaining critical wins in dual matches versus Ladue and Burroughs.
It’s also worth noting the perfect records turned in by Patel, Puri, and Padratzik in dual match singles and doubles play. Going undefeated across both formats over an entire season is no small feat. Their consistency and poise under pressure anchored our lineup and set the tone for everyone else.
We faced and beat some of the best teams in the state across all classes—Clayton (the Class 1 champions), John Burroughs (the Class 3 champions), and Rockhurst (the Class 3 finalist) among them. Every match, our guys showed up focused, prepared, and ready to battle.
Local media covered the team’s “Triple Crown” achievement—winning the Class 2 State Championship, as well as the State Singles and Doubles titles.
Additionally, Kizer was named to the All-Metro First Team, and Patel and Puri were named to the second team.
I’m grateful to this group for their resilience, leadership, and commitment to the program. Their legacy is now part of MICDS tennis history.
