NCHSAA WOMEN’S DUAL TEAM TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS

 

PANTHER CREEK, BISHOP MCGUINNESS, MARVIN RIDGE  WIN
      Two of the most successful tennis players in North Carolina High School Athletic Association history finished their high school careers on a high note on Sunday afternoon at the Burlington Tennis Center.
     Sammi Smith and Jordan Strickland of Cary Panther Creek teamed to win the last four 4-A state doubles championships, only the second time in NCHSAA history that has occurred, and on Sunday they led their team to the NCHSAA 4-A women’s dual team tennis championship as Panther Creek defeated Charlotte Myers Park by a 5-1 count.
     Smith, playing at the number one singles, and Strickland, at number two, swept their matches in easy fashion, each dropping only one game in their straight set victories, and Smith was named the Most Valuable Player of the championship. The two did not team to play doubles because Panther Creek wrapped it up during singles play.
     Panther Creek was in the finals for the third time and won its third successive dual team title, finishing a perfect 21-0 record.  Myers Park lost for the first time after entering the finals with a 16-0 mark. The Mustangs have made the championship match five times in the last eight years and have finished as state runners-up four times since 2009.
     The 1-A and 3-A finals were held at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center at Elon University. Kernersville Bishop McGuinness won the first four singles matches in the 1-A championship and went on to a 5-1 victory over Raleigh Charter. It was the second straight state title for the Villains. 
      Bishop’s Morgan Auger, who won at number-one singles, was named the MVP of the championship as Bishop finished the season 18-3. Raleigh Charter suffered its first dual team loss in 15 matches.
     In the 3-A championship, Waxhaw Marvin Ridge and Cameron Union Pines split the first four singles matches, but Marvin Ridge won at five and six to take a 4-2 lead into doubles play. Then it was the number-three doubles for Marvin Ridge that provided the impetus for the 5-2 victory.
     Ainsley Zubrinsky, Marvin Ridge’s number-five singles player who won and then teamed with Nina Vanblarcom for the clinching doubles win, was the championship MVP.
     Union Pines was in the finals for the first time since 2006, when it lost in the championship match to Hickory, while Marvin Ridge was in the finals for the first time. Union Pines finished the year 15-2 while Marvin Ridge was 17-3.
     Rain has delayed the 2-A portion of the tournament so the regionals have yet to be completed in the West.  Plans for that championship will be set after the finalists are established. 

NORTH CAROLINA HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION
26th Annual Women’s Dual Team Tennis Championships
Sunday’s Results

4-A CHAMPIONSHIP: CARY PANTHER CREEK 5, CHARLOTTE MYERS PARK 1
    Singles: Sammi Smith (PC) def. Maddie Weber 6-0, 6-1; Jordan Strickland (PC) def. Katie Soden 6-1, 6-0; Leah Wallihan (MP) def. Orla Labiche 6-1, 0-6, (10-7); Amanda Cyr (PC) def. Gaby Soden 6-4, 6-2; Aishani Tingare (PC) def. Emily Holderness 6-1, 6-1; Melody Zhang (PC) def. Aubrey Bader 6-1, 6-0.
    Doubles not played with outcome decided.

3-A CHAMPIONSHIP: WAXHAW MARVIN RIDGE 5, CAMERON UNION PINES 2
    Singles: Ella Imhof (MR) def. Mary Beth Jackson 6-4, 6-0; Hailee Haymore (UP) def. Rachel Zubrinsky 6-3, 6-4; Hannah Scott (MR) def. Julianne Hall 2-6, 6-1, (10-8); Megan Smith (UP) def. Ryleigh Burns 6-3, 6-3; Ainsley Zubrinsky (MR) def. Sarah Nicholson 6-4, 6-2; Nina Vanblarcom (MR) def. Megan Pusser 6-3, 7-6 (7-1). 
    Doubles: Jackson-Haymore (UP) vs. Imhof-R. Zubrinksy (MR) match halted with outcome decided; Hall-Smith (UP) vs. Scott-Burns (MR) match halted with outcome decided: A. Zubrinsky-Vanblarcom (MR) def. Nicholson-Pusser 10-5.

1-A CHAMPIONSHIP: KERNERSVILLE BISHOP MCGUINNESS 5, RALEIGH CHARTER 1
    Singles: Morgan Auger (BM) def. Mackenzie DeLoatch 6-4, 6-0; Anna Petrangeli (BM) def. Logan Furr 6-2, 6-3; Becky Auger (BM) def. Camryn McClure 7-5, 7-6 (7-5); Claire Rogers (BM) def. Christina Lee 6-3, 6-2; Blair King (RC) def. Melanie Vynalek 7-5, 6-4; Candyce Sturgeon (BM) def. Gabby Ledford 6-3, 3-6, (10-7).
    Doubles not played with outcome decided.