Brotherly run ends in semifinals for St. Francis’ Freers
It wasn’t that long ago when the idea that St. Francis High brothers Jack and Ian Freer would pair to become a formidable tennis duo bordered on ridiculous.
Each suffered various injuries throughout the season that kept them apart and off the tennis court.
When the brothers were finally healthy, they made a run perhaps no one outside of St. Francis anticipated.
The Freers advanced to the final day of competition of the CIF Southern Section Boys Individual Tennis Championships.
Their postseason march was ended as they were defeated by the defending CIF champion and top-seeded duo of San Marino’s Bryce Pereira and Connor Lee, 6-2, 6-0, in the semifinals Saturday afternoon at the Seal Beach Tennis Center.
The loss capped a 13-3 season in which all three of the Freers losses came versus CIF finalists: Pereira and Lee and Harvard-Westlake’s Timothy Li and David Arkow.
“I’m really proud of the guys and they have nothing to be ashamed of,” St. Francis coach Ron Zambrano said. “The other team was just plain unbelievable, just too good. My guys hung in there and they were happy, but they played against a two-time Ojai winner and defending CIF champion.”
The Freers took the lead in the first set, 1-0, before San Marino rallied to go ahead, 2-1, and eventually, 5-1, behind the power of UCLA-bound Pereira and precision of Georgetown University-committed Lee.
The Freers rallied to take a game and climb within, 5-2, only to watch San Marino’s All-American duo close out a 6-2 victory.
Momentum from that first set victory carried over as Pereira and Lee closed out a 6-0 second-set victory in 20 minutes.
“We just wanted to give the St. Francis guys total respect because of the last time we faced them in Ojai,” said San Marino coach Melwin Pereira, father of Bryce. “We had a letdown and they played very well.”
Saturday’s contest was a rematch of a 6-2, 7-6 (7-2) victory for the Titans twosome over the Freer brothers in the semifinals of the 117th annual Ojai Invitational on April 29.
It was only a week earlier when senior Jack Freer, who’s heading to Division III Whitman College, and sophomore Ian Freer first played together this season.
“I had two herniated discs in my back after injuring myself playing basketball and Ian broke his nose,” Jack Freer said. “It was the same basketball tournament. So, we were out all of March and most of April and then we played the last weekend of April.
“To get from that point, which was real unexpected, to now is just awesome.”
For Ian Freer, the loss was hardly a reason to pout.
“It was awesome playing with Jack because, honestly, not too many brothers get along on the court as well as we did,” Ian Freer said. “It was fun to have a run like this, especially at the end of my brother’s high school career.”
The Freers finished 4-1 in the CIF tournament and finished runner-up in the Mission League to Li and Arkow.
