Port Clinton's Gabe Costa, Blake Troller ready for challenge of state tournament

In 2008, the goal was to qualify for the state tournament.

A year later, junior Blake Troller wants to win a doubles match -- at the very least.

Troller and senior Gabe Costa are the area's lone qualifiers for the 2009 State Tennis Tournament, which begins Friday at the Stickney Center on the Ohio State campus.

Troller said the second time around will be better than before, because he and Costa earned a No. 1 seed after winning the district title Saturday, beating Lima Central Catholic's Brian Bruin and Brandon French, 6-3, 7-6 (6).

Troller and then-junior Paul Carman lost their first-round match in the 2008 tourney to Andrew Knust and Kyle McCall of Cincinnati Seven Hills, 6-3, 6-2.

Now that he understands the atmosphere and the pressure, Troller expects to be relaxed the second time around, and he'll try and keep Costa grounded.

"I'll try and relax him as much as possible," Troller said. "You're almost star-struck when you're down there. And to see you're there is really sweet. To stay composed is really tough."

Troller remembers arriving at state and seeing state tournament t-shirts for sale with his name listed among the participants, and recognizing some of the top players in the state and thinking -- and realizing -- he was among them.

"As long as your relaxed and play your game, it's just tennis," Costa said.

Troller was the Sandusky Bay Conference singles champion for the second straight year, and Costa finished third, as both earned a spot on the first-team all-league list. They are each 33-3 in singles play, but teamed up as a doubles partnership for the sectional tournament.

The tournament brackets will be released during the week.

At state, you have to play to win, Port Clinton coach Jim Lamb told them.

"If we can play our best, then we'll see what happens," Costa said. "We should just play our 'A' game and see what happens."

Costa will return to Brazil June 28, but is considering attending college in the United States.

He admitted it won't be an easy decision.

"I've been living without (my family) for a year, so it's really a hard decision to make," Costa said.

In his year on the lake, Costa played soccer in the fall and tennis in the winter and spring.

He scored the game-winning goal in the Division II sectional tournament to give the Redskins a 3-2 overtime win against Ontario.

In a country where the national sport is soccer and the emphasis is playing 'the beautiful game,' Costa has shown he can pick up the racket, too. And he's enjoyed his time abroad.

"We have a great team and a great school," Costa said, "with great people."