Forest Lake's Boyer breaks through to win 2A boys' tennis singles title

There's another Boyer in the Minnesota Class 2A boys' tennis record books.

Saddled with the pressure of living up to his older brother's legacy, Forest Lake senior Toby Boyer captured his first 2A singles state title on Friday by defeating Elk River senior Josh Gearou in straight sets at Baseline Tennis Center.

It was Boyer's third consecutive appearance in the championship match. He finished as a runner-up the last two years dealing with the nerves of matching Dusty Boyer, a four-time champion in the event from 2009-2012.

"Dusty has pretty much gone down as the best Minnesota high school tennis player of all time," Boyer said. "You're his little brother, and you're trying to be just as good or even better. People are expecting you do as well and just a lot of pressure.

"The last two years, [nerve cramps] got to me. I tried my best, but they just attacked me. This year in my semifinal I was tight, not hitting the ball as well as I wanted to. I just had a lot of confidence going into the final. This is my last year and I just went for it."

Boyer dominated the first set, 6-0, as he took advantage of a fatigued Gearou, who played in a lengthy semifinal contest that lasted just over three hours and delayed the start of the championship game. Gearou defeated Wayzata junior Nick Beaty, the defending champion, 0-6, 6-4, 7-6 (8) despite dealing with cramps late in the match.

"I was really sore," Gearou said. "I tried to stretch that [cramp] out a bit after the match. It was a tough semifinal, and I had to just go into the final with as much energy as possible. I think I did that."

Just like in his semifinal matchup, Gearou fought in the second set to try and force a third set. He earned two game points, taking advantage of some backhand and volley errors from Boyer. Despite some of the mistakes, Boyer rallied on multiple occasions to snag some crucial points despite and seal the victory, 6-2.

"I kind of made some errors and had to regain my focus," Boyer said. "He's a good player, and I had to just make more shots and get him moving."

Boyer said he always dreamed about winning the state title as a child and even opted not to play basketball this season so he could play more matches in the winter to boost his confidence.

The extra work paid off.

"I had a chance to win three in a row, but the other guys outplayed me those days," Boyer said. "But this year I was confident in my game."

Master Tesfatsion • 612-673-4171