March 17, 2025
By: Brian Cadle
DCHS Tennis Developing a Winning Culture
The DCHS boys’ tennis team won the DeKalb Invitational with a 5-2 victory over Macon County at the Smithville Golf Club last Friday. The Tigers were 3-0 on the day, with their other two victories over Riverdale and Oakland. The tournament title was the first in the tenure of Head Coach Brian Cadle, who is in his fourth year at the helm for the Tigers.
Lance Duke, a freshman, led the Tigers with a 6-0 record for the day, going undefeated in both singles and doubles play. Tiger seniors Ian Barnes, Jackson Mathis, and Luke Midgett all won five matches to secure the team championship. The Tigers stand at 4-1 for the season and Coach Cadle was both pleased and excited for the boys. “I started this tournament a few years ago to give our kids a chance to play lots of matches on the same day as a way to prepare for both the district regular season matches and tournament. Winning the tournament and gaining valuable season experience is a double blessing.”
The girls finished second in the tournament with a 2-1 record. They defeated Riverdale and Oakland but lost to Macon County in the championship. Charlotte Paladino, the lone senior in the varsity lineup, led the girls with a 4-2 record. Junior Candice Rico also won four matches. Juniors Abby Joe Crook, Jayde Lester, and sophomore Kayce Hale all won three matches for the Lady Tigers. The girls’ team record is 3-2, with the three wins equalling half of the team victories from last season. Cadle pointed out the growth of the girls’ team over the past three seasons. “Our girls’ program had to essentially start over in 2023, with the loss of several seniors and two returning players not coming out. We did not win a match that year, won six matches last year and now sit at three wins already. The girls have worked through the adversity and worked hard in the off-season to improve and get more experience. It certainly shows right now.”
The DCHS tennis program has enjoyed an overall surge in both participation and success, along with growing player confidence. Mathis, the senior captain, for the Tigers, commented on his confidence as a doubles player. He is partnering with a longtime friend, Midgett. “Luke and I have been friends for over ten years and know how to play off each other. We are both very energetic people on the court who know when to take the load if one of us is not playing well. We are confident in each other and go into every match knowing that we can win.”
Cadle is excited about the Tiger tennis program seeing players from the same family joining in. “We are proud to have two second-generation players in Ian and Lance. Their dads, Adam Barnes, and Patrick Duke, were both tennis players at DeKalb during their time in high school. Barnes stated, “My dad was a great influence in how I got into tennis and grew my skill so quickly. We would go to the courts a lot and hit and he taught me all that he knew about the sport.”
The DCHS team also has several siblings of current players in the tennis program pipeline. Ethan Brown, a sophomore Tiger player has an older brother, Isaac, who played for the Tigers and graduated back in 2023. Mia Bell is a freshman player for the girls’ varsity team and has a brother, Oliver, who is a 6th grader on the middle school team. Luke Midgett’s youngest, brother, John Casey, a 4th grader, is participating in the 10 and under tennis program offered in Smithville by Coach Cadle. Paladino has an older brother, Ian, who played for the Tigers and graduated in 2022. “The best tennis programs have players who belong to tennis families, with several kids playing tennis for their school. I have seen that trend in all my years of coaching. I am so excited to see our DeKalb families going in that direction.”
The boys’ program has seen a winning season in the last two seasons and earned ten wins in 2024. Cadle is hopeful that both teams will reach that pinnacle this season.”We have started strong and the kids have begun to develop a winning culture of commitment, consistency, and confidence. Our team has progressed to believing in their ability to win matches.” At press time, the Tigers played White County on Tuesday and will host York Institute on Thursday at 3:30 pm.