Twice in a row is perhaps nothing more than a coincidence. But
Kyle Skinner and Eric Johnson wanted to make sure San Benito’s
recent shortcomings in the Tri-County Athletic League Finals became
nothing more than a brief trend. As the top doubles pairing in the
TCAL
— they marched through the league season undefeated — Skinner
and Johnson fought back the nerves of owning the league’s top seed,
maintained a steady composure just long enough and enjoyed a
post-match victory hug Friday after they dispatched Palma’s A.J.
Yates and Hunter Johnson in a come-from-
behind match, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 — snapping a two-year losing streak
San Benito has had in the TCAL doubles championship.
SALINAS
Twice in a row is perhaps nothing more than a coincidence. But Kyle Skinner and Eric Johnson wanted to make sure San Benito’s recent shortcomings in the Tri-County Athletic League Finals became nothing more than a brief trend.
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As the top doubles pairing in the TCAL — they marched through the league season undefeated — Skinner and Johnson fought back the nerves of owning the league’s top seed, maintained a steady composure just long enough and enjoyed a post-match victory hug Friday after they dispatched Palma’s A.J. Yates and Hunter Johnson in a come-from-behind match, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 — snapping a two-year losing streak San Benito has had in the TCAL doubles championship.
“The curse is off,” Skinner said.
“The jinx is over,” Johnson added.
Call it what you may.
Skinner and Johnson are doubles champs of the TCAL, and become the first individuals from San Benito, in either singles or doubles, to advance to the Central Coast Section Boys’ Tennis Championships since Eddie Barrios in 2000.
“I have goose bumps,” Skinner said afterward.
“It’s a relief,” Johnson added.
While the last two years have seen a Baler pairing advance to the TCAL championship, only to come across a doubles buzzsaw and fall one match short of advancing any further in the postseason, Skinner and Johnson provided the antidote Friday at Everett Alvarez High School in Salinas.
“But I knew before going in there were gonna be some ups and down,” San Benito head coach Chris Yoder said of his No. 1 team, whom he expected would go through the highs and lows against Palma’s duo.
“But just maintain an even keel,” Yoder added. “Don’t get tweaked when you make a mistake.”
Skinner and Johnson played doubles all season and advanced to the championship round of the TCAL Finals on Thursday. But had been part of the problem the last two years for San Benito doubles teams transpired yet again during Friday’s championship — the Baler duo squared off against a pairing of singles players they hadn’t seen all year.
Yates and Johnson represented Palma’s No. 2 and No. 3 singles players, respectively, this season, offering Skinner and Johnson a different look at a league opponent, and in what could have been their last match of the year.
Coupled with the fact that the nerves of living up to their No. 1 seed were present as well, and Skinner and Johnson started noticeably slow, dropping the first set 2-6.
“I was shaking, for sure. I was shaking on the car ride over,” Skinner said. “But I was also angry. This (losing the first set) can’t be happening. We’re way too good for that.”
Skinner and Johnson had a meeting with Yoder in between sets, and the Baler twosome changed their strategy moving forward as a result, opting to show a more aggressive approach by attacking the net.
“Just get in there,” Skinner said.
Playing the net wasn’t a normal approach for the doubles team, though, especially on Friday. Johnson is a baseline player, while Skinner often tries to poach volleys at the net.
But a strong crosswind at Everett Alvarez noticeably pushed offerings from one side of the court to the other — and away from Skinner — while anything near the sideline often sailed out of bounds.
“The ball would move at least four to five inches,” Johnson said.
Ask Yoder about the change in strategy, though, and he’ll tell you it was supposed to be the team’s approach all along. “They were caught up in the moment,” he said.
“We weren’t doing anything we said we were gonna do. You have to come forward,” Yoder added. “They did that and they started getting points. The lights went on.”
Although Palma earned the first game of the second set, San Benito shifted momentum in the very next game, battling back from a 40-15 deficit to knot the set 1-all, with the Balers collecting two points on Skinner’s shots at the net.
It was later 5-1 Balers in the second set when Palma changed momentum yet again behind the serving of Yates, while his teammate Johnson began to counter Skinner’s net play.
The Chieftains battled back to within one game of the Balers when Eric Johnson, not Skinner, delivered a forceful backhand at the net that translated into an errant Palma return, as well as a second-set victory for San Benito to knot the match.
“We were trying to remain calm,” Skinner said. “They came out firing, but we were more calm.”
The decisive third set played out rather similarly to the second. Palma took the early lead behind the serving of Yates (“Definitely some trouble with him,” Johnson said), but the Balers again vaulted forward and eventually grabbed a 5-3 lead, taking advantage of Skinner’s serving.
It was 5-4 San Benito and 40-15 in the final game when Palma roared back to force deuce, but the Chieftains’ last attempt sailed long — perhaps a result of the high wind.
“It was worse yesterday,” Skinner said of the wind.
Still, after receiving a first-round bye, the Baler duo downed Salinas’ Alex Wolf and Tyler Bachelder 6-4, 6-4, then Gilroy’s Andrew Costa and Joseph Leong 6-3, 6-4 on Thursday to advance to Friday’s final.
And they weren’t the only representation. Teammate Andrew Skinner, who fell in his first singles match Thursday to top seed and eventual champion Sebastian Pagano of Salinas, battled back in the consolation bracket to finish in fifth place.
He beat Henry Mirassou of Palma 8-0, topped Ryan Case of Gilroy 8-6, and defeated Veasna Khay of Christopher 8-5.
“We’re looking to win the league next year, for sure,” said Yoder, who’s expected to return all of his players toward next year’s team. “I expect us to be a contender for the next two years, for sure.”
As for Skinner and Johnson, they still have another tournament to compete in: the CCS Boys’ Tennis Championships, slated for May 24 and 26 at the Imperial Courts in Aptos.
“People were expecting us to be in the finals, so I felt a little bit of pressure,” Johnson said. “But we were on top, and we wanted to keep it that way.”
Read about the first day of the Tri-County Athletic League Finals here.
