The moment Victor Brown’s final backhand landed wide at Seal Beach Tennis Center one week ago, Gage Brymer’s post-victory smile and modest fist pump signaled the end of the greatest four-year high school tennis career in county history.
Brymer’s senior season alone couldn’t have transpired any better.
The 18-year-old with the huge forehand helped University win its fourth consecutive CIF-Southern Section team championship, became the first player to win three Ojai Tournament singles titles since Bobby Riggs 77 years ago and the first in 59 years to claim three CIF-SS singles crowns.
After concluding an unprecedented four-year run with his second straight undefeated season, Brymer has been selected the Register’s boys tennis player of the year. It is his third such honor, as he was also recognized after both his sophomore and junior seasons.
2013 All-County boys tennis team
CdM’s Gresh is 2013 boys tennis coach of the year
“It feels great,” said Brymer, the USTA’s top-ranked 18s player in the nation. “All you can do on the court is do your best and try to win as much as possible. It’s a really big honor for me to get the player of the year. It’s pretty cool.”
Brymer’s historic senior year started to take form in mid-April in Rancho Mirage, where he won six matches in six days for his second Easter Bowl title in three years. He showed his perseverance and ability to outlast any opponent in his age group, losing the first set only to win the final two in four of his matches.
Thirteen days later, Brymer reeled off nine straight games to beat Taylor Fritz, a talented freshman from Torrey Pines, 6-3, 6-0, and hoisted the Farnam Cup at the 113-year-old Ojai Tournament for a record-tying third time. In six matches spanning three days against Southern California’s best, he dropped only 15 games combined.
But April was merely a sign of things to come in May and June. Brymer’s first May highlight came on the month’s second day, when he beat Corona del Mar’s Alec Adamson, 8-4 in a pro set, for his fourth Pacific Coast League title. Two weeks later, Brymer and fellow All-American classmates Tyler Lu and Stefan Menichella made it a perfect 4 for 4 in CIF-SS team championships. The Trojans went on to win the inaugural SoCal Regional eight days later.
And finally, last Saturday, Brymer followed up a 6-3, 6-3 victory over San Marino’s James Wade in the semifinals by coming from behind in the first set to beat Alta Loma’s Brown, 6-4, 6-0, and finish his high school career the only way he ever imagined.
“Who’s better than him in the country?” University coach John Kessler said after Brymer’s final match. “You see Wade bring it for three games. You see Victor bring it for four games. But who brings it every tournament?”
In the days following the CIF individual tournament, Brymer found some time to relax and let his success sink in a bit. On Sunday, for the first time in quite a while, he took a day off from tennis.
“It’s still pretty great,” he said. “It feels really good to end the season right and have all the titles and look back at the last year and be happy with the result.”
Contact the writer: jkaplan@ocregister.com
