Could another state title come this year for Century tennis juggernaut?

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POCATELLO — For more than a decade, Century High School has boasted one of the most successful tennis programs in the state.

Since the 2012 season, Century has won five girls’ team state championships and four boys’ team state championships, including sweeps in 2017 and 2018. Last season, the Diamondback boys finished second at the state meet, losing by 1.5 points to Boise’s Bishop Kelly High, while the girls finished fourth.

Sean Kane has been Century’s head tennis coach throughout that run, taking the helm in 2007.

He called it “kind of a weird thing” that competitive tennis has developed in an east Idaho environment that doesn’t nurture it as a sport, noting that Ammon’s Hillcrest High has also grown into a legitimate perennial state contender.

“It’s crazy,” he told EastIdahoSports.com. “You wouldn’t think that us, in east Idaho, would compete with Boise in tennis, just because of how much more tennis they have. But we do (compete with them) consistently. … It’s kind of a weird little niche, the tennis here is pretty good.”

Century is currently 8-0 on the season, after beating Sugar-Salem 11-1 at Century High School on Wednesday.

A standard Idaho high school tennis meet consists of 12 matches: three boys’ singles, three girls’ singles, two boys’ doubles, two girls’ doubles and two mixed doubles.

Kane said he grew up playing tennis for fun, but always focused his competitive efforts on team sports, particularly soccer, which he played his freshman through junior years in high school at Highland. He decided not to play soccer in his senior year, saying, “I didn’t really want to do anything; I just wanted to play Nintendo 64.”

His parents, though, gave him an ultimatum: Take part in a school extracurricular or get a job. After working briefly at a fast-food restaurant, he quit and decided to join the tennis team.

“I only played my senior year, but I made varsity, and it was a lot of fun,” he said. “I wish I had done it all four years.”

That led him to take an assistant coaching position at Highland in 2005, and then move on to Century two years later. Now, he has ushered in a period of high expectations with the Diamondbacks and has driven teams to meet them.

“We’ve kinda established that culture that we want to be competitive, that we want to win state championships. The kids seem to understand what that takes,” he said.

During his tenure at Century, Kane has brought a workman-like approach to all levels of the tennis program, from skill development and talent scouting to player preparation and seeking out the top meets.

“We’re here to work, we’re doing a job,” he said of the program-wide approach.

Century’s program began to improve when Kane brought that approach to the school, and it really took off when he obtained invites to the top invitational meets in the Treasure Valley.

“Just going and seeing what the best is, and knowing if we want to be at that level, we can see it and know what we have to do to be at that level,” Kane said, has been huge for the development of the program.

The players and coaches have “totally bought in,” he added, saying that his players take their tough training regimens into the off-season.

This season, led by some of the same names that took Century to the doorstep of another state title last year — like Liam McGee, Tiden Lynn, Shep Butler and Nate Romriell — Century appears to be in position to add another banner.

“I think we have the potential — the right pieces, maybe, for a boys’ title and sneakily, maybe, for a girls’ title, too,” Kane said. “It’s just about things lining up.”

The Diamondbacks play their conference opener Thursday against Pocatello, at Century High School, with the district tournament just around the corner, on May 5, 6 and 7. The state meet is at the Boise Racquet Club on May 15 and 16.