Bonanza aims for 3rd consecutive title

Nick Christensen

Thursday, Oct. 23, 2003 | 10:22 a.m.

It may have been three years ago, but the memories are still fresh for Bonanza seniors Alec Runyon and Ernie Domanico.

It was autumn of 2000 in Reno, and the Bonanza boys' tennis team, heavily favored to win the state championship, became a victim of their own hype. They fell to Reno's Galena High by a half-point, because, as the seniors say, they weren't taking the tournament seriously enough.

So this year, Runyan and Domanico are trying to impress upon their teammates the importance of focus as Bonanza tries to three-peat in the state championship. The 4A state tennis championships were to begin this morning and run through Saturday at Meadows School in Summerlin.

"We try to tell them to go hard and not to mess around," Domanico said. "Everybody is out there to beat us."

Bonanza coach Rick Niemczewski thinks his team's chances are good, coming off the Bengals' largely unchallenged run to the Sunset Region crown. Sophomores Rishi Daulat and Lenny Whiting lead bonanza's singles teams, and their top doubles team pairs Runyon with freshman Jonathan Ribaste.

"Doubles is such a big part of it," Niemczewski says. "You get three points for winning in doubles, and two points in singles. It involves more strategy, more things we can do formation-wise. It's very important."

Niemczewski credits his team's continued success to geographic good fortune.

"We have a good (school) zone," he said. "The area is conducive to tennis. People have courts in their back yards, their cul-de-sacs. When the kids come to me, they have a background in tennis, so I can skip the fundamentals and go over strategy. We've had a lot of talent for a lot of years."

The most difficult part of the regular season for the Bengals is the same problem many other dominant prep teams face -- a lack of serious competition in their division.

"Our division is not strong," Niemczewski said. "I try to keep them humble, keep them from getting a big head. Sometimes with high schoolers, you can't predict their mindset. I just try to keep them humble and grounded."

And, as the playoffs come to a close, the senior leaders at Bonanza are trying to set an example of that humility with those memories of 2000 still in their minds.

"We're more serious and humble," Domanico said. "Last year, we were a little more naive. But we know how it feels to lose."

"Coach has pushed practices harder," Runyon added. "We try to take it more seriously. This year, we're a little more mature. We know we would have been four-year champions. Now, we can only have three."