John Rohrkaste of Montour advanced to next month’s PIAA Singles Tennis Championships Friday, and he didn’t need to lift a racquet to do so.
The Spartans’ senior standout was scheduled to play South Park junior Jonah Jasek in the third-place consolation game at the WPIAL Class 2A Boys Tennis Singles Championships at Bethel Park Friday, with a berth in the PIAA tournament on the line.
But Jasek was unable to play due to injury, which means Rohrkaste will advance to the PIAA tournament as the WPIAL’s third-place finisher.
Rohrkaste said he learned Thursday night that Jasek would withdraw due to injury.
“On the one hand, it’s a bit of a shame because I was looking forward to playing him,” Rohrkaste said. “I wanted to prove myself and he’s a good player who deserves a chance to play. So on that end, it stinks. But this was my goal from the get-go — to get to states. So I can’t really complain.”
This will mark Rohrkaste’s second appearance in the PIAA tournament in the past three years. As a sophomore, he lost in the opening round of the state competition.
This year’s PIAA tournament will take place May 23-24 at Hershey Racquet Club.
Max Henson, a junior at Belle Vernon, won the Class 2A singles title Friday and Gateway senior Adam Memije won the Class 3A crown.
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