The back is a tricky body part.

Strain a muscle and you might feel pain for a couple of days and have trouble walking. Bruise it badly enough and you might not be able to sit in a chair or sleep comfortably.

But, apparently, it is possible to hurt your back and still win a tennis tournament. At least that’s what Lawrence High’s Scott Elwell was able to do.

The junior rolled over four opponents Monday in the Class 6A regional at the Lawrence Tennis Center on his way to first place and a spot in the state tournament on Friday and Saturday at Topeka Washburn Rural.

Elwell finished fourth at state last year and could do even better this year.

“It’s going to depend on how well he plays and how the draw breaks out,” Lions coach Dick Wedel said. “But he definitely has a good chance to win it this weekend.”

Elwell, the No. 1 singles seed, won his first match, 9-3, against Topeka High’s No. 16 seed, Howard Johns, but Elwell said he hurt his back during his second match.

Elwell said he slowed his serve and used less of a power game because of the injury, but he still defeated No. 8 seed Ross Hougland of Olathe East with ease, 6-2, 6-4.

Wedel said he was glad to see Elwell mix it up.

Lawrence High's Scott Elwell returns a shot to Washburn Rural's Ben Weichman. Elwell won the regional title with a victory over Weichman in the championship game of the Class 6A regional Monday at the Lawrence Tennis Center.

“He wasn’t just hitting the ball,” Wedel said. “He dropped it short and hit it side to side and made the other guys make adjustments. Last year he had one speed: Hit the ball hard. This year he’s done it differently.”

Elwell, who said he has played competitively since 1997, beat Olathe South’s No. 4 seed, Adam Hougland, 6-1, 6-2, and advanced to the finals, where he faced Washburn Rural’s No. 2 seed, Ben Weichman.

The two played close for the first six games, but Elwell rallied to win the first set, 6-4, and cruised in the second for a 6-1 victory.

“My back started loosening up toward the end of the day,” Elwell said. “I just wanted to keep playing as best I could and hopefully do well.”

Lawrence High’s doubles team of junior Owe Rambau and senior Jon Weygint placed fourth at the tournament and earned a state berth.

“I knew that these guys had a chance to make it,” Wedel said. “They got a good draw and then they played well and it fell into place.”

The fourth-seeded team of Rambau and Weygint won its first two matches before falling to the No. 1-seeded team of Drew Hanson and Sumeet Patel.

The Washburn Rural freshmen won the doubles portion of the event after they defeated Topeka High’s No. 2-seeded team of Spencer Holdren and Scott Bond, 6-1, 6-3, in a rematch of the Topeka City Championships nearly three weeks ago.

The Junior Blues added another doubles team to the state tournament when the No. 3-seeded team of Matt Koupel and Jeff Milberger made it to the semifinals. They defeated Rambau and Weygint for third place.

Olathe South placed two singles players, Erik Hansey and Adam Hougland, in the state tournament after the pair finished third and fourth, respectively.

Class 6A Regional Tennis

Lawrence High's Owe Rambau, left, slaps hands with teammate Jon Weygint. The Lions qualified for state by taking fourth at a Class 6A regional Monday at the Lawrence Tennis Center.

At Lawrence Tennis Center

Singles

First round: No. 1 Scott Elwell, Lawrence, def. No. 16 Howard Johns, Topeka, 9-3; No. 8 Ross Hougland, Olathe East, def. No. 9 Brett McDonald, Leavenworth, 7-2; No. 5 Adam Smith, Olathe East, def. No. 12 Andre Groll, Lawrence, 9-4; No. 4 Adam Hougland, Olathe South, def. No. 13 Cole Smart, Washburn Rural, 9-2; No. 3 Erik Hansey, Olathe South, def. No. 14 Cole Hambleton, Olathe North, 9-1; No. 6 Alan Martinez, Free State, def. No. 11 Andrew Duncan, Leavenworth, 9-0; No. 7 David Duniven, Topeka, def. No. 10 Anthony Amspacker, Olathe North, 9-1; No. 2 Ben Weichman, Washburn Rural, def. No. 15 Rishi Surana, Free State, 9-3.

Second round: Elwell def. Hougland 6-2, 6-4; A. Hougland def. Smith 6-1, 3-6, 7-5; Hansey def. Martinez 6-0, 6-4; Weichman def. Duniven 6-0, 6-0.

Semifinals: Elwell def. A. Hougland 6-1, 6-2; Weichman def. Hansey 7-6, 6-2.

Consolation: Hansey def. A. Hougland, 9-3.

Finals: Elwell def. Weichman 6-4, 6-1.

Doubles

First round: No. 1 Drew Hanson-Sumeet Patel, Washburn Rural, def. No. 16 Matt Clark-Zach Moore, Olathe East, 9-0; No. 8 Garth Burns-Blake Henshaw, Leavenworth, def. No. 9 Jeff Cravens-Brian Dobski, Lawrence, 9-3; No. 12 Anthony Melius-Bryan Kerling, Olathe South, def. No. 5 Ben Croopp-Matt Schwabauer, Free State, 9-5; No. 4 Owe Rambau-Jon Weygint, Lawrence, def. No. 13 J.J. Rogers-Justin Hance, Olathe North, 9-5; No. 3 Matt Koupel-Jeff Milberger, Washburn Rural, def. Matt Suddock-Kyle Bonan, Olathe South, 9-0; No. 6 Matt Williams-Chris Wolfe, Topeka, def. No. 11 Erik Gesparovich-Josh Wassmer, Olathe East, 9-5; No. 7 Eyad Safadi-Eric Sheu, Free State, def. No. 10 Nate Jones-David Milne, Leavenworth, 9-6; No. 2 Spencer Holdren-Scott Bond, Topeka, def. No. 15 Brad Bolden-Jeff Needham, Olathe North, 9-3.

Second round: Hanson-Patel def. Burns-Henshaw 6-0, 6-1; Rambau-Weygint def. Melius-Kerling 6-3, 6-3; Koupel-Milberger def. Williams-Wolfe 6-2, 6-1; Holdren-Bond def. Safadi-Sheu 6-3, 6-1.

Semifinals: Hanson-Patel def. Rambau-Weygint 6-0, 6-1; Holdren-Bond def. Koupel-Milberger 6-3, 6-2.

Consolation: Koupel-Milberger def. Rambau-Weygint, 7-5, 6-0.

Finals: Hanson-Patel def. Holdren-Bond 6-1, 6-3.