On the court: Ruppaner again left his mark at the Region I-5A tournament in Lubbock last week, as he earned his second straight trip to the state tournament. He won four matches to claim the region title, cruising fairly in the first three, winning them in straight sets. In the championship match against Abilene Wylie’s Trevor Short, Ruppaner had to fight for the win. Ruppaner lost the first set, but came back and won 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 to punch his ticket to the state tournament again. Last year as a sophomore, Ruppaner reached the state semifinals before falling. Next Tuesday at 8 a.m. in San Antonio, Ruppaner will open in the state quarterfinals by facing Austin Liberal Arts and Sciences Academy’s Milind Mutala. Ruppaner needs to win two matches to play for the state championship Wednesday. He has only two losses this season.
Coach Galen Reid: “That was the expectation the whole year. I’ve been with him for three years and he’s a very good player. Ethan’s played a ton of matches so he’s been playing tennis since he was six years old. He knows how to work himself out of bad spots. He’s very confident in himself and you could see that he was going to be OK. Ethan plays year-round. He never stops playing. I think anything less than state semifinals would be a disappointment for him this year. I think what people don’t see from Ethan is he’s a scrambler. He has great shots but he gets balls where it looks like a winner but he gets it. He never gives up on a point. He has good anticipation for where the ball’s going.”
Ruppaner: “I was expecting to win. I could have played better I played well in the last two sets of the first match but the first set was a struggle. I think I just had to make fewer unforced errors. I was missing a little too much in the first set. The second set I just started being more consistent and worked the point better. It was in my head. I thought at the middle of the second set I started feeling pretty comfortable. I could see (Short) wear down. The third set I felt I was in control the whole time. It was tight but I never felt uncomfortable. If I get back to (state) I wouldn’t have called it a very successful year. I thought it was pretty positive and I thought I should have been there again.”
About Ruppaner
Favorite band or musician: The Weeknd
Favorite social media platform: Instagram
Favorite athlete: Rafael Nadal
Bet you didn’t know: Although his older sister Chloe also played tennis at Tascosa, his parents never played the sport.
Parents: Nathan and Kaulene Ruppanner