It was a busy week for tennis players across the Texas Panhandle as Region I tournaments were held to determine who would advance to the state tennis tournament May 15-16 at various sites in San Antonio. A big change was initiated by the UIL beginning this year that eliminates the playback portion of these tournaments which allows three players instead of two from each category to advance to state.
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Canyon ISD dominates
Canyon ISD dominated the District 4-4A tournament two weeks ago and it was much the same at the Region I-4A tourney at the McLeod Tennis Center in Lubbock on Friday and Saturday. All but one qualifier from the district meet will advance to state next week in San Antonio.
Randall’s doubles team led the way with two golds and two silver medals. The girls bracket saw Gabby Dishong and Emmalee Sillivent take down teammates Lily Harding and Abri Hayes 6-1, 6-2 in the finals. Dishong and Sillivent only lost two games heading into the finals as they dominated the competition while Harding and Hayes breezed to the semis before upsetting the two seeds, Addison Armstrong and Melany Vazquez of Seminole, 7-6 (5), 6-3 to make the finals.
The dynamic duo of Dax Betzen and Kynley Craddock only lost six total games in four matches as they raced past the Canyon duo of Bradley Enriquez and Hannah Terry, 6-1, 6-3 for gold. Enriquez and Terry were just as dominant before the finals only dropping two games before running into the Randall buzzsaw but still grabbing second.
In boys’ doubles, Jensen Betzen and Sawyer Eason survived an epic three set match against Jake Wiske and Kelan Williams from Brock, 6-3, 6-7 (6), 7-5 before falling to the top seed from Burkburnett, Owen Ruiz and Landon Lowrey, 6-4, 6-3 to capture silver.
Cooper Richardson of West Plains continues to make a statement each step of the way as the junior netter steamrolled to the finals and took the top-seed, Caden Coker of Burkburnett, 6-2, ,7-5, to claim the individual title. Coker, the defending state champion in boys’ doubles, could never take control of the match against the defending state champ in mixed doubles.
Hereford’s Brandon Ysaguirre fell to Coker in the semifinals but still grabbed a spot at the state tourney with a convincing 6-2, 6-1 win over Nathan Ellis of Levelland. All three entries representing Region I-4A in boys singles has a state title to their name in doubles and will now be looking to add gold by themselves.
For Canyon’s Lauren Brooks it was more the same in girls’ singles as she took gold with a 6-3, 7-5 win over Rose Cordes of Stephenville. The super sophomore will make her second trip to state looking to add more hardware to her trophy case. Brooks won’t be alone there as her teammate, Samantha Melear, fell to Cordes in the semis but dispatched Graham’s Jade Dospapas, 6-1, 6-2, to take bronze.
Sandies advance three players to state
Amarillo High coach Koby Otto is retiring at the end of the season but he’s making one last trip to the UIL Class 5A state tournament as three Sandies advanced during the Region I-5A tennis tournament Wednesday and Thursday at the McLeod Tennis Center in Lubbock.
Sara Shelhamer will be making a return trip to San Antonio as the talented sophomore sailed to the finals of the girls’ singles bracket before falling to the top seed, Hope Willis, from Abilene Wylie. Shelhamer garnered a pair of 6-0, 6-0 wins in the first two rounds before dispersing of Lila Satterfield from Aledo, 6-3, 6-4, in the semifinals. In the finals, Willis toppled Shelhamer 6-0, 6-2 to earn gold.
In mixed doubles, the pair of Barrett Stroud and Halle Rose grabbed bronze and a trip to state. After picking up two straight set wins, the Sandie netters found themselves in a dog fight with the second seeded group of Kate Delgado and Steven Cowling from Abilene Wylie.
In a fantastic, back and forth match, Stroud and Rose narrowly fell 6-4, 6-7 (6), 4-6 to move into the third-place match with Cynthia Darby and Henry Ferguson of Abilene High. This one wouldn’t prove to be any easier, but Stroud and Rose found themselves on the winning end of another three-set match. In a gritty duel that was even closer than their semifinal match, the pair split sets, 7-5, 4-6, before toppling the Eagles duo in a tiebreaker 7-6 (4) to move on.
Gruver’s Holloway shakes up girls’ singles
It was all but a foregone conclusion that the top two seeds in the Region I-2A girls’ singles bracket would make a return trip to San Antonio. However, someone forgot to share this with Gruver’s Carter Holloway at the Rebel Tennis Center in Amarillo on Wednesday and Thursday and the Greyhounds netter is now headed down south to try and shake up things at state.
The senior started the tourney out with a 6-1, 7-5 win over Jennifer Rocha of Wheeler before taking down Tatum Bailey of Abernathy, 6-4, 7-6 (5). That set up a match with the second seed, Chelsea Muniz of Wink. Holloway was able to pick up the first set in a tiebreaker, 7-6 (5) and needing just one more set to pull off the upset. That second set would not be easy but the hard-hitting Greyhound kept her cool and won 7-5 to move to the finals and ensure a trip to state. In the finals, she ran into Zoe Askins of Christoval, a state semifinalist last year, and the top seed came out on top, 6-2, 6-0, but that doesn’t diminish the charge Holloway put into the girls’ singles bracket that resulted in a silver medal.
Nazareth leads the charge at the Region I-1A tournament
Texas Panhandle players captured 12 of the 15 possible spots at the Class 1A state tournament during the Region I-1A meet in Levelland on Wednesday and Thursday. That contingent was led by Nazareth, always a force in tennis at the small school level, which locked up five of those entries.
The mixed doubles pair of Brooklyn Birkenfeld and Caysen High led the way for the Swifts. After notching a couple of easy wins to sail into the semis, the senior duo faced Brandon Martinez and Zulema Ruiz of Booker. It took the talented netters a set to get going, falling 6-4, before roaring back with a 6-2, 6-4 second and third set to move into the finals. Matched up with last year’s regional champs, Toryan Childers and Diezel Ramirez of Patton Springs, neither Birkenfeld or High were fazed as they registered a 6-3, 6-4 win.
In the third-place match, Martinez and Ruiz found themselves against another Naz team, Taylor Wethington and Daniel Schacher, for a trip to state. After grabbing the first set again, 6-2, the Kiowas team couldn’t knock off Naz as they cruised to a 6-2, 6-0 win for bronze.
Taylor isn’t the only Wethington headed to state as her sister, Taryn, teamed up with Kambri Cleavinger to grab gold in girls’ doubles. The road to gold wasn’t easy as they had to survive a three-set win over Mayte Ramirez and Suliana Valdivia of Booker, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the quarters. In the semifinals, they found themselves in a heated match again, this time against Tyler Cole and Haven Hill of Borden County. After splitting sets, 6-4, 3-6, the Naz duo won 7-5 to move into the finals.
Awaiting them in the finals was their teammates, Kate and Maddie Brockman, who went to state last year. Doing nothing easy, this one was another three-set thriller. In the end, it was Wethington and Cleavinger who came out on top with a 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 hard earned victory.
Joining the Nazareth teams at state is Jaylie and Jayla Dickey from Fort Elliott. After falling in the semis to the Brockman sisters in three sets, they found themselves down a set to Hill and Cole but rallied for a 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 win and a bronze medal.
It was a clean sweep for the Amarillo-area in girls singles as well. McLean’s Kassidy Russell, a basketball signee with Southwestern Oklahoma State, never lost a set and took home gold with a 7-5, 6-2 win over Lexi Ramaekers of Nazareth. The third-place match saw Happy’s Celia Middleton punch her ticket to state with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Ali Mahler from Fort Elliott.
It was an all-Booker final in the boys’ singles as Angel Ochoa took down Yul Tenner, the foreign exchange student from Germany, 6-0, 2-6, 6-4 to grab gold as both Kiowas will be heading to state.
Finally, in boys’ doubles, the argument could be made that Miami’s Will Sims and Breken Early were the most impressive players over the two-day tournament. The talented duo cruised to gold with straight set victories at every stop along the way including a 6-3, 6-1 win over Camden Wiebe and Knight Durham of Grady in the finals.
The hard-hitting Warriors will be joined by the Valley pair of Leo Cruz and Eean Hartman. The Patriots netters took down Happy’s brother duo of Brance and J’Lond Ferguson, 6-2, 6-1 to earn bronze.