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April 18, 2018
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The Mary Persons varsity boys and girls tennis teams pose with their trophies after each squad finished in second place in Region 2-AAAA for the second straight year. While the MP
boys have already secured a spot in the state Sweet 16, the MP girls team will have its chance at home at 4 p.m. on Wednesday against visiting Shaw. (Photo/Richard Dumas)
MP tennis teams finish runner-up at region
By Richard Dumas
forsytb~mymcr.net
The Mary Persons boys ten
nis team advanced to the sec
ond round of the AAAA state
playoffs for the second straight
year with a 3-1 home victory
over Cairo on Monday.
In a hard-fought first-round
match that came down to a
pair of decisive final sets, the
Bulldogs prevailed over the
visiting Syrupmakers to move
on in the state playoffs. It was
MP’s No. 1 doubles tandem
of Caleb Wilson and Micah
Wilson that captured the de
ciding point, winning a tight,
three-set match, 6-3, 2-6, 6-2
in the third and final set. If the
Wilson duo had lost its match,
all eyes would have turned
to No. 2 doubles, where MP’s
pair of Jordan Carr and Seth
Smith were locked up in an
intense three-set match at
6-3,4-6,4-3. The Carr-Smith
match was halted once the
Wilsons wrapped up the team
victory.
MP’s other victories came in
No. 1 singles where standout
Chris Swars dominated his
opponent 6-0, 6-0 and in No.
3 singles, where MP’s Preston
Wilson won via forfeit. MP’s
lone defeat came in No. 2
singles, where Tanner Lee was
beaten in straight sets.
MP head coach Hannah
Grossman said of the boys’
first-round win: “I knew it
wasn’t going to be easy going
in. Then we went ahead, win
ning the first set in both of our
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doubles matches, and Chris
had already won. So I was
feeling pretty good, and then
we just got out of our routine
and out of our game. We just
played down a little bit. It
took us losing the second set
in both matches in doubles
for us to realize that we’ve got
to start playing. Once they
started doing what they know
how to do and go back to
the basics, they were able to
overcome it and take care of
business.”
Grossman said the Wilson
brothers have worked hard on
their serves this season, and it
came in handy in a tight third
set against Cairo.
“Caleb’s working on a kick
serve, and his kick serve was
killing it,” Grossman said. “He
had the wind at the begin
ning a little bit, so he didn’t
use much of it. But that third
set he used it, and it made a
difference. Micah was put
ting some spin on his serve
and had less double faults. It
makes a difference being able
to win your service game and
having success there.”
The Bulldogs, 13-4 overall
(5-2 in Region 2-AAAA),
advanced to the AAAA state
playoffs by virtue of a second-
place finish in the Region
2-AAAA tournament at John
Drew Smith Tennis Center in
Macon on Thursday.
MP defeated Upson-Lee 3-0
in the semifinals on Thursday
to guarantee the Bulldogs
a home first round playoff
match. Swars won his No. 1
singles match 6-0, 6-0 while
the Bulldogs also swept the
two doubles matches. The No.
1 pair of Caleb and Micah
Wilson won its match 6-0,
6-4 while No. 2 duo Carr and
Smith took care of business
6- 4, 6-2. MP’s Lee was leading
7- 6,1-3 in his No. 2 singles
match while Preston Wilson
trailed 2-6, 6-1,1-3 in his No.
3 singles match when play was
halted after MP clinched.
The Bulldogs then got a
30-minute break before taking
on West Laurens in the finals
for the second consecutive
year. The finals was one-sided
with the Bulldogs failing to
capture a single set in an 0-5
loss. Swars was pounded in
his No. 1 singles match 0-6,
1-6, and his teammates failed
to fare much better. Lee lost
his No. 2 singles match 2-6,
Effective third-set serving
by the doubles team of
Micah Wilson (above) and
Caleb Wilson enabled the
MP boys to prevail on Mon
day. (Photo/Richard D umas)
3-6 while Preston Wilson fell
2-6,1-6 in No. 3 singles. In
doubles, Caleb and Micah
Wilson dropped their match
1-6, 2-6 while Smith and Carr
fell short 4-6,4-6 in the tight
est match of the final.
Grossman said the MP boys
simply fell short to a more
talented team in the finals
match.
“West Laurens is a very solid
team all around in every spot
they’ve got,” Grossman said.
“They’ve had some freshmen
come in that are excellent
tennis players, but we played
them much better this time
around than we did the first
time. The scores didn’t reflect
their hustle, their heart and
really how well they played
today’
The MP boys squad will
next travel to state super
power Woodward Academy,
likely on Tuesday, April 24,
in its next match. Woodward
Academy captured the AAA
boys state title three times in a
four-year span between 2009-
12 but has not won state since
moving to AAAA in 2013.
Meanwhile, the MP girls
team will next host Shaw in
the first round of the AAAA
state playoffs at 4 p.m. on
Wednesday. If MP wins, the
Lady Dogs would also travel
to Woodward Academy, likely
on Tuesday, April 24, for their
second-round match. The
Woodward Academy girls
have won four state titles since
2008, including most recently
in 2015.
The Lady Dogs, 9-7 overall
(4-3 in Region 2-AAAA), also
advanced to the state playoffs
as a result of a second-place
finish in the Region 2-AAAA
Tournament in Macon on
Thursday. For the second
straight year, the Lady Dogs
fell short to West Laurens
in the championship match,
losing 0-5.
MP’s No. 1 singles standout
Cadi Seitz lost her match,
MP’s Jackie Gore dropped
her No. 2 singles match 1-6,
1- 6 while No. 3 singles player
Emma Cantrell fell 0-6, 0-6. In
doubles, MP’s No. 1 doubles
tandem of Audrey Parrott
and Madeline Copeland lost
2- 6,0-6 while the Lady Dogs’
No. 2 doubles team of Reagan
Dorrity and Anna Starr lost
0-6, 1-6.
MP advanced to the finals
on Thursday by virtue of a 3-0
semifinal victory over Upson-
Lee earlier in the day.
MP was victorious in both
doubles matches with the No.
1 team of Parrott and Cope
land dominating 6-3, 6-0. MP
won the No. 2 doubles match
by forfeit since Upson-Lee’s
full team was not present due
to spring break. The other
Lady Dogs’ win came in No. 2
singles where Gore completed
a double-bagel 6-0, 6-0 vic
tory. Cantrell was ahead 6-4,
3- 3 in her No. 3 singles match
while Seitz trailed 2-6, 0-1 in
her No. 1 singles match when
the semifinal team match was
halted.
Grossman said she was
proud of her young girls ten
nis squad in finishing second
in the region.
“A lot of them had never
played tennis before, and they
came out here and worked
hard every day and knew what
they needed to do,” Grossman
said. “They all wanna win, so
they all have that fight and
that drive. A lot of them are
beginner tennis players, but
they did what it takes to host
that first round and second
place in region.”
The Lady Dogs will be seek
ing their third straight Sweet
16 appearance with a win over
Shaw on Wednesday.
(<&>- S///Y~es
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