It’s hard to calculate the value of tradition, but in the span of 24 hours this weekend, two traditional boys’ tennis powers won sectional titles in eerily similar fashion.

First, on Friday afternoon in Fort Wayne, Homestead extended its state-record streak of consecutive sectional championships to 30 with a scintillating 3-2 victory over rival Canterbury.  Homestead has four sophomores among the varsity seven.  Canterbury seemed on the verge of ending Homestead’s long dominance, but Austin Overlander rallied from a 3-5 deficit in the decisive third set at No. 3 singles to preserve the victory for the tradition-rich Spartans.

Then, Saturday afternoon in Muncie, my Delta team won its 16^th straight sectional championship – and again, tradition seemed to be a big factor.  With three sophomores and one freshman among the seven varsity players, a very young Delta team edged Muncie Burris 3-2 in the championship match.  In a scenario that was almost an exact replica of the Homestead-Canterbury match, No. 3 singles player Caleb Austin was the last player on the court and was behind 3-5 in the third set to his Burris opponent.  And he rallied to win in a third-set tiebreaker, preserving the Delta streak.

Another long sectional streak received a scare this week when Munster was pushed to the limit in the semifinals by an upstart Lake Central team.  Munster was in trouble early but hung tough for a 4-1 win and its 28^th straight sectional title.