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Kennett with Holcomb tennis team advances to the Final Four
The Kennett/Holcomb tennis team secured their tickets back to the Final Four as a team Monday, defeating both Bishop DuBourg and North County. The team’s latest win takes them to Springfield for a second time, in addition to the five players who will be competing in the individual state tournament.
The Lady Indians began the day with a clean sweep over Bishop DuBourg, whom Kennett had defeated just two days prior in individual sectionals.
Beginning with doubles play, with a five-win threshold needed to advance, Kennett won every match to set the day’s momentum early on.
The No. 1 duo of Claire Bean and Handley McAtee defeated Bishop Dubourg’s Colleen Johnson and Amie Byers 8-0. Kennett’s No. 2 doubles team faced much closer competition, as they defeated Kate Bettlach and Savannah Seel 8-4. In the third and final doubles match, Kennett’s Carley Winston and Giselle Garcia-Gallegos also dominated their match against Mary Kwentus and Heidi Cordell 8-0.
The trend would continue as singles took to the court. Kennett’s No. 2 in the lineup, Handley McAtee, dropped one game to lock down Kennett’s fourth win of the day 6-1, 6-0. Giselle Garcia-Gallegos shut down the court for the final win needed to advance. Garcia-Gallegos came out victorious in two sets against Heidi Cordell 6-0, 6-0.
Before the action stopped due to Kennett reaching the required five wins, Christi Tejeda had won a set of her singles match against Amie Byers 6-1, and Claire Bean was leading 4-0 in her singles match against Kate Bettlach.
And thus began an hour-long wait to decide whether they will be making more than one trip to Springfield this fall.
The Lady Indians were required to win two matches, against two different but highly competitive teams, to advance to the Final Four. So, Monday afternoon Kennett took the court across from North County.
In the morning, North County had also won 5-0 over Lutheran South. The Lady Indians also had to win against them last year to advance to the Final Four, and they knew it wouldn’t be easy.
For the first time this season, Kennett’s strength was in singles rather than doubles.
Claire Bean and Handley McAtee fell to Lauren Politte and Alli Scott 5-8, Christi Tejeda and Macy Bazzell fell to Lucy Pace and Camille Skaggs 4-8, and Carley Winston and Giselle Garcia-Gallegos fell to Kinley Tracy and Chloe Roach 4-8 in the first doubles sweep not won by Kennett this season.
“They hung in there the best they could, but after doubles we were down 0-3,” head coach Janet Hilburn said. “We had a short team meeting to regroup. Our backs were against the wall and I told them what had to be done. The girls said ‘I’ve got it, coach,’ and when they stepped onto the court for singles they were a new group of kids.”
Looking to make a statement, Macy Bazzell told Hilburn before singles “I’m going to hurry up and show them we can get a point.”
Bazzell walked off the court 30 minutes later with Kennett’s first win of the afternoon, defeating Camille Skaggs 6-1, 6-0.
The next to finish was Giselle Garcia-Gallegos, also looking to make a statement as the only Kennett player not competing in the individual state tournament. Garcia-Gallegos won her match with a clean sweep over Chloe Roach 6-0, 6-0 for Kennett’s second win.
Handley McAtee took control in a hotly contested match against Lucy Pate for a 6-3, 6-3 win to tie the day 3-3. At the same time, Holcomb’s Claire Bean won her first set 6-3, but lost the second 3-6, leading to a third-set tie-breaker which went in favor of North County, bringing the lead back into their hands.
So it came down to Christi Tejeda and Carley Winston.
“Christi had a hard fought battle,” Hilburn said. “This girl was really tall, could get to anything, but Christi kept frustrating her and playing her game and hammering at her.”
Tejeda won her match 6-2, 6-2 to once again tie the contest.
The last player off the court was Winston facing off against North County’s Kinley Tracy. She easily won the first set 6-1, then lost the second 6-7 after a tie-breaker. One last set would determine the future of Kennett with Holcomb’s postseason.
Winston rallied to gain a 9-5 lead in the ultimate first-to-ten finale. Then things swayed 9-6, 9-7 and lastly 9-8 in a “stressful, nerve-racking” conclusion.
“She finally won the last point, and I went crazy and so did the team. And she just smiled,” Hilburn said. “I felt like I had played in Wimbledon and it was just a berth to the Final Four.”
“I knew that North County was going to be a good team; they’re well-coached and they’re solid,” Hilburn continued. “When you get up against teams that are like yours, you have to be ready. They came out on fire, and they shook my girls in doubles. But when they saw they could hit with them in singles, they got it together and got going.”
Kennett with Holcomb has earned their spot in the Final Four to play in Class 1 Girls Tennis State Tournament. They begin play next Friday in Springfield at the Cooper Tennis Complex. The team will first face off against Chillicothe Friday at noon and will compete against either Clayton or Notre Dame de Sion Saturday.