The Baylor Lady Red Raiders are in an unfamiliar position heading into this morning's singles championship matches at the 62nd annual Chattanooga Rotary prep tennis tournament.
The two-time defending Rotary champions and seven-time defending state champions trail Knoxville Webb 15-13 after Friday's singles and doubles matches in the girls' A Division.
Baylor and Webb will go head to head in four of the six championship matches in singles and could meet in all three doubles finals.
"We're looking forward to those head-to-head matches because that could decide it," Baylor coach Kevin Donovan said. "It's going to be an important day for both teams. They're coming in with the lead, so there could be a little added pressure on them."
The two teams will square off at Nos. 2, 3, 4 and 5 singles starting at 8:30 a.m. Doubles semifinals are scheduled to start at 11 a.m.
Lauren Carelli, Landie McBrayer, Anna Hawkins and Lilly Mooney are Baylor's singles finalists, and all four will compete as part of doubles teams along with Presley Thomas and Carolyn Reid. Donovan said the key for his team will be how they answer the early-morning call.
"Energy. We're big on energy and passion for why you're here and playing for Baylor," Donovan said. "When you have good energy and passion for Baylor, good things happen. Coming out of spring break, I thought we'd come out a little flat, but we were focused today."
Senior-laden Girls Preparatory School is in third place with nine points and two singles finalists in Maddox Bandy at No. 1 and Corinne Spann, who upset the second seed at No. 6 on her way to the championship match. The Bruisers also have two teams in the doubles semifinals.
The boys' A Division is also set to come down to the wire, with four teams within two points. Two-time defending champion St. Xavier from Louisville, Ky., trails Montgomery Bell Academy from Nashville and tournament newcomer Gilman from Baltimore, Md., and is tied with Memphis University School.
MBA is ahead with 11 points and Gilman lurks close behind with 10.5. MUS and St. Xavier each nine points.
McCallie is fifth with 6.5 points and Baylor sits two points behind in sixth. Unseeded Hank Leathers provided a spark for McCallie's Blue Tornado, making a run all the way to the No. 2 singles finals. Leathers upset two top-four seeds, coming back from a set down to the No. 2 seed in the semifinals.
Chattanooga Christian is third in the girls' B Division with seven points, six back of leader McCracken from Paducah, Ky. Signal Mountain is sixth with three points.
Signal is tied for fifth in the boys' B Division with five points. Knoxville Webb leads with 18 points, eight ahead of its closest challenger.
Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com