Tennis State Finals - Singles/Doubles - Friday

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It was Ladies Day at BlueCross Spring Fling XVI at Middle Tennessee State this morning as Chattanooga area players claimed three girls' state tennis championships.

 

Senior Tarah Garner (D-I A/AA, Boyd Buchanan) and ninth grader Sadie Shackelford (D-II A, St.Andrews-Sewanee) successfully defended 2008 singles titles, while twin sisters Kayla and Ahmee Kelly (Chattanooga Arts and Sciences) won the D-I A/AA doubles.

 

McCallie had runners-up in D-II AA singles (Chris Schlabach) and doubles (Sawyer Voges-Thomas Fanjoy) and GPS junior Sarah Evans was second in D-II AA singles.

 

Overall, five champions from 2008 won again today. Joining Garner and Shackelford with gold medals were Brandon Fickey (Webb) in D-II AA singles, Guinn and Vicki Garcia (Webb) in D-II AA doubles and Nick Widmer-Steven Young (Knox. Catholic) in D-I A/AA doubles.

 

D-II AA Boys' Singles: Sophomore Brandon Fickey (Webb) defeated Chris Schlabach (McCallie), 6-0, 7-5 for his second title.

 

???I would like to be the first player to win four (singles titles), but I have to win my third one first,'' said Fickey in response to being asked if pursuing four state titles was important to him.

 

D-II AA Boys' Doubles: In possibly the best doubles final, Will Carter-Cliff Guyton (Memphis University School) rallied to edge McCallie's Sawyer Voges-Thomas Fanjoy, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-4.

 

The Blue Tornado duo trailed 4-1 in the first set tie-breaker, but won six of the final seven points for the set. MUS trailed 4-2 in the third set, but won the final four games.

 

Carter has played in four state doubles finals, winning in 2007 (with Watson George) and 2009. Carter cost his team a game in the third set when he smashed his racquet on the net after losing a point. The code violation warranted a point penalty which made it game for McCallie.

 

Voges was attempting to earn a doubles title 30 years after his dad and coach (Eric) won his first of two in 1979.

 

D-II AA Girls' Singles: In what many feel was an upset, Hayly Humphries (Hutchison) defeated pre-tournament favorite and previously unbeaten Sarah Evans (GPS), 6-3, 6-3. Evans had edged Humphries 6-3, 6-3 in the team semifinal match on Tuesday. Both players ended the season with one loss - losing to each other.

 

D-II AA Girls' Doubles: Guinn and Vicki Garcia (Webb) were on their game in the final against Maggie Leavell-Maggie Donoghue (Hutchison), posting a 6-1, 6-0 triumph.

 

Careful What You Say: After today's final, Webb players said that Hutchison comments on Thursday made for good locker room bulletin board material and incentive for victory.

 

Leavell-Donoghue, when walking past the Garcia's after the semis, were heard commenting that the finals would be much easier than the semis. The Hutchison tandem rallied to defeat Caitlin Casey-Samantha Lewis (Harpeth Hall), 2-6, 7-6, 6-2, in the semis.

 

???We played so well from start to finish,'' said Vicki, a ninth grader.

 

Guinn, who will play tennis at Wofford next year and won a doubles title with Berkeley Brock in 2006, told one late arriving fan, ???You should have seen how intense we were out there today. We were really ready for this one.''

 

???I thought one of the keys to the victory was Guinn and Vicki winning the first game of the second set to keep the pressure on and it worked,'' said their father, Joe Garcia. ???You win big in the first set and then let the other team right back in the match at the start of the second can cause problems. But that wasn't the case today.''

 

This was the 10th state combined singles and doubles title for the Garcia family dating back to their Aunt Dena who won that initial family medal; the 1965 singles crown.

 

D-II A Girls' Singles: In the all-sister final, defending champ Sadie Shackelford defeated junior Avery Shackelford.Their younger sister, Michaela, plans to be on the team in 2010 as an eighth grader.

 

D-II A Girls' Doubles: Sabrina Blum-Mary Ashley (St. George's) defeated Caroline Awh-Olivia Doochin (USN), 7-6, 6-4.

 

D-II A Boys' Singles: In an all-USN final, Alex Metzman defeated Sreyas Reddy, 6-7 (3), 6-2, 7-5. Metzman was 2008 singles runner-up.

 

D-II A Boys' Doubles: USN also claimed the doubles title as Sathvik Reddy-Michael Stephanides defeated Andrew Strafuss-Travis Sammons (St. George's), 6-3, 6-3.

 

D-I AAA Girls' Singles: Kayla McMurray (Bearden) smiled her way to the title with a 6-0, 6-3 triumph against Alison Storie (Science Hill).

 

???I guess I had a pretty good two days of tennis,'' said a beaming McMurray with gold medal in hand.

 

In Thursday's semifinal, McMurray fought through tears and a score dispute to defeat defending champ Allison Hodges (Houston), 7-5, 6-2. The Bearden junior, who lost to Hodges in the 2008 semis, had the last laugh and was all smiles after the win.

 

Asked her thoughts of being titled ''the bad draw'' in her half of the bracket instead of having the bad draw (having to play both 2008 finalists back-to-back), McMurray said ???Yea, I guess I was the bad draw, at least today.'' She also beat 2008 singles finalist Kelly Gray (Siegel) in the quarters, 7-5, 6-2.

 

D-I AAA Girls' Doubles: Julia Hsu-Leslie Roberge (Farragut) defeated Kasey Spilman- Kayla Jones (White Station), 6-4, 6-4. This is the first girls' state tennis medal for Farragut since Pam Colfie won back-to-back singles titles in 1986 and 1987.

 

D-I AAA Boys' Singles: Science Hill's Chris Smith defeated Drake Hernandez (Brentwood), 6-1, 6-0, in the finals. Smith, who will play tennis for UT-Chattanooga next year, finished second to Ian Chadwell (Centennial) in the 2008 final.

 

D-I AAA Boys' Doubles: In the biggest come back of the day, Alex Howard-Beau Blacksheer (Brentwood) rallied to defeat Lucas Kelley-Riota Yoshida (Maryville), 0-6, 6-1, 6-4. The Maryville team was 2008 runners-up.

 

This is the first singles or doubles championship for Brentwood boys' tennis.

 

D-I A/AA Boys' Singles: Colton Norton (Univ, School of Jackson) now has a singles medal to go along with his 2006 doubles medal. Norton defeated Erick Hale (Ezell Harding), 6-1, 6-0 in today's final. Norton is the first USJ singles winner since Lee Taylor Walker in 2000.

 

D-I A/AA Boys' Doubles: Nick Widmer-Steve Young (Knox Catholic) stopped Hunt Magee-Allisson Mansur (USJ), 7-6 (8), 6-2, for their second title in a well played final.

 

D-I A/AA Girls' Singles: Tarah Garner (Boyd Buc) defeated Madison Patey (USJ), 6-1, 6-3, in a repeat final from 2008.

 

???This one meant more to me I guess because I am a senior and it was my last high school match,'' said Garner who was undefeated this season and only lost to Kayla Kelly (Chattanooga Arts & Sciences) in a regular season match in 2008.

 

D-I A/AA Girls' Doubles: The third time was the charm today for the Kelly Family. Twin sisters Kayla and Ahmee Kelly (Chattanooga Arts & Sciences) defeated the sisters team of Julie Covington-Brittany Covington (Clarksville Academy), 6-2, 6-4 for the gold medals.

 

The twins' older sister, Albany, who now plays tennis at Milligan College, lost in the state semis doubles (with Miriam Pate) in 2005 and 2007.

 

The girls' father, Kirk Kelly, played at Brainerd High School and Chattanooga State.

 

Tourney Notes:

 

6-3 Format: The D-II coaches have sent a proposal to the TSSAA to change the team format in playoffs to a 6 singles/3 doubles format from the current 5 singles/2 doubles.

 

The decision will be made at the TSSAA board of conrol meeting in early June or in August.

 

More Courts: A new 16 court complex will be built at Old Fort Park which has been the second site for the TSSAA state tournament along with MTSU.

 

BlueCross Spring Fling XVII-XX: A city to host the next four Spring Fling state championships will be announced late summer.

 

Contact B.B. Branton at william.branton@comcast.net

 

also posted on chattanoogan.com

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Careful What You Say: After today's final, Webb players said that Hutchison comments on Thursday made for good locker room bulletin board material and incentive for victory.

 

Leavell-Donoghue, when walking past the Garcia's after the semis, were heard commenting that the finals would be much easier than the semis. The Hutchison tandem rallied to defeat Caitlin Casey-Samantha Lewis (Harpeth Hall), 2-6, 7-6, 6-2, in the semis.

 

This is garbage. You can not seriously print this crap. You have a kid who ease drops on an opposing team's conversation and puts some serious spin on it to try and get recognized. If you want to try and paint some kids in a negative way, why did you neglect to mention how the one of the sisters threw a royal temper tantrum during the team final, receiving a code violation after throwing her racquet and screaming at her opponents and nearby fans.

[alwest]

Careful What You Say: After today's final, Webb players said that Hutchison comments on Thursday made for good locker room bulletin board material and incentive for victory.

 

Leavell-Donoghue, when walking past the Garcia's after the semis, were heard commenting that the finals would be much easier than the semis. The Hutchison tandem rallied to defeat Caitlin Casey-Samantha Lewis (Harpeth Hall), 2-6, 7-6, 6-2, in the semis.

 

This is garbage. You can not seriously print this crap. You have a kid who ease drops on an opposing team's conversation and puts some serious spin on it to try and get recognized. If you want to try and paint some kids in a negative way, why did you neglect to mention how the one of the sisters threw a royal temper tantrum during the team final, receiving a code violation after throwing her racquet and screaming at her opponents and nearby fans.

 

 

Or for that matter that their father, also quoted in the article, was removed from the regional championships for coaching his daughters. a despicable act that he should be ashamed of.

[GOAT2000]

Or for that matter that their father, also quoted in the article, was removed from the regional championships for coaching his daughters. a despicable act that he should be ashamed of.

 

 

Can anyone tell me why the Garcia's father is being quoted in the article? Those girls played well during the tournament, but they didnt dominate in the fashion that everyone is making it out to be. They played a tough semi-final round that could have gone either way against Ryan.

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Can anyone tell me why the Garcia's father is being quoted in the article? Those girls played well during the tournament, but they didnt dominate in the fashion that everyone is making it out to be. They played a tough semi-final round that could have gone either way against Ryan.

 

 

I would be more interested in knowing why their coach kept hugging them during their matches and calling them names like honey, sweetie, darlin, and girlfriend.....from where I was sitting, it felt a little creepy and was the unpleasant talk of several of the parents and other players around.