Southern Nash hits the court today for the second straight year at the N.C. High School Athletic Association 3-A boys tennis championship.
The Firebirds didn't fare well in their last trip to the state finals at Burlington Tennis Center, losing 6-0 to Charlotte Catholic. Southern Nash won't have to worry about Charlotte Catholic today as the Cougars were toppled by Lake Norman in the West Regional final Thursday.
But Lake Norman has to be the odds-on favorite to win it all. After all, only one team east of Raleigh has won the 3-A title since the classifications were split up in 1986 and that was Eastern Wayne in 2003. The only other team east of Raleigh to win a boys state title since 1963 was Hunt when freshman Jim Rogerson led the Warriors to the school's first state championship. The NCHSAA's record book is spotty prior to 1963 but it appears Goldsboro and Rocky Mount may have won some state titles in the 1950s.
Needless to say, eastern N.C. is not where the best tennis players are found and certainly not in the 3-A ranks. But does that mean the Firebirds don't have a chance today? I didn't think they had a chance to even get this far considering they lost 5 of their starting 6 singles players from last year's team. The 2008 Firebirds had several players like Michael Barnes and Ethan Page who had been starting since their sophomore seasons.
Last May, it seemed Southern Nash's unbeaten run to the East crown was the culmination of many years of excellence under the watchful eye of head coach Brad Joyner. I figured Joyner would have another solid team this year but didn't think he and the Firebirds could pull off another unbeaten run to the state championship.
Certainly, he's been helped by the addition of German exchange student Julian Paulsen at No. 1 singles but the play of guys like Jordan Hagler, Isaac Arnold, Adam Glover and the Matthews brothers, Will and Clay, has been spectacular. For a rural school that draws students from an area larger than Wilson County, Southern Nash has established itself as a true state power in boys tennis.
So, although the Firebirds will take the court today as decided underdogs, who's to say they can't pull off the upset? But if they can't, I wouldn't bet against them going to Burlington again next May.
Showing posts with label high school boys tennis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label high school boys tennis. Show all posts
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Championship Saturday update
Some other scores to report on N.C. High School Athletic Association championship Saturday.
In the boys tennis dual-team championships, East Chapel Hill blanked Charlotte Ardrey Kell 6-0 to take the 4-A title; Raleigh Cardinal Gibbons rolled past Newton-Conover 6-0 to repeat the results from last year's 2-A championship and in the 1-A ranks Durham School for the Arts needed doubles play to edge Hendersonville 5-2.
In the girls soccer championship's at N.C. State University's Paul Derr Stadium, Jacksonville White Oak "three-peated" as 3-A queens with a 4-0 handling of previously unbeaten and nationally No. 1-ranked Asheville T.C. Roberson. Junior Stephanie Rose had a goal and an assist for White Oak to earn MVP honors. Fike fans might remember Rose as a very fast freshman wing that had two first-half goals in the Lady Golden Demons' 3-2 loss in Jacksonville in the fourth round of the 2006 playoffs.
In the 2-A classification, Kill Devil Hills First Flight edged East Bend Forbush 2-1 for its first girls soccer state title in its four-year history.
Holly Ridge Dixon joined White Oak as Onslow County state champions with a 1-0 conquest of Polk County in the 1-A division.
In the boys tennis dual-team championships, East Chapel Hill blanked Charlotte Ardrey Kell 6-0 to take the 4-A title; Raleigh Cardinal Gibbons rolled past Newton-Conover 6-0 to repeat the results from last year's 2-A championship and in the 1-A ranks Durham School for the Arts needed doubles play to edge Hendersonville 5-2.
In the girls soccer championship's at N.C. State University's Paul Derr Stadium, Jacksonville White Oak "three-peated" as 3-A queens with a 4-0 handling of previously unbeaten and nationally No. 1-ranked Asheville T.C. Roberson. Junior Stephanie Rose had a goal and an assist for White Oak to earn MVP honors. Fike fans might remember Rose as a very fast freshman wing that had two first-half goals in the Lady Golden Demons' 3-2 loss in Jacksonville in the fourth round of the 2006 playoffs.
In the 2-A classification, Kill Devil Hills First Flight edged East Bend Forbush 2-1 for its first girls soccer state title in its four-year history.
Holly Ridge Dixon joined White Oak as Onslow County state champions with a 1-0 conquest of Polk County in the 1-A division.
Firebirds fall short of title but what a season!
Southern Nash suffered its first loss in 27 boys dual-team tennis matches this spring when Charlotte Catholic zapped the Firebirds 6-0 in the N.C. High School Athletic Association 3-A state championship in Burlington this morning.
The Firebirds of coach Brad Joyner have no reason to hang their heads, however. According to records available on the NCHSAA Web site, Southern Nash is just the second 3-A team east of Raleigh to reach the state final since the association initiated dual-team championships in 1991. Wake-Forest Rolesville lost to Asheville in the 1996 3-A title match.
The only team east of Raleigh to win a state title in any classification was Topsail in the 1-A ranks last year. Greene Central made it to four consecutive 2-A championships from 2002-2005 but lost to Shelby twice and Charlotte Catholic twice. Union Pines, which is south of Raleigh in the Sandhills region, won the 1-A title in 1991 and 1993.
Schools from Wake County have won 12 titles with Raleigh Broughton capturing eight 4-A championships and Millbrook one. Cardinal Gibbons — like Charlotte Catholic and Bishop McGuiness, another private school competing in the NCHSAA ranks — has won three 2-A crowns, including one today.
West of Wake, the numbers rise sharply. East Chapel Hill won its ninth crown today while Chapel Hill High won three 4-A titles in the early years of the dual-team championships.
Other strongholds besides Charlotte are Burlington, Greensboro, Hickory, Statesville, Elkin and Asheville.
Simply put, schools from western and central North Carolina dominate high school tennis in the state. When you take into consideration that Southern Nash is a rural school at which tennis still isn't deeply rooted, the Firebirds' achievement is pretty doggone awesome.
Joyner has managed to put together a juggernaut boys program in Stanhope but his latest group of seniors — Michael Barnes, Ethan Page, Nicolas Finet, Cody Brandt and Kyle Ramsey — has been his best. They've had quite a run over the past three springs.
The Firebirds of coach Brad Joyner have no reason to hang their heads, however. According to records available on the NCHSAA Web site, Southern Nash is just the second 3-A team east of Raleigh to reach the state final since the association initiated dual-team championships in 1991. Wake-Forest Rolesville lost to Asheville in the 1996 3-A title match.
The only team east of Raleigh to win a state title in any classification was Topsail in the 1-A ranks last year. Greene Central made it to four consecutive 2-A championships from 2002-2005 but lost to Shelby twice and Charlotte Catholic twice. Union Pines, which is south of Raleigh in the Sandhills region, won the 1-A title in 1991 and 1993.
Schools from Wake County have won 12 titles with Raleigh Broughton capturing eight 4-A championships and Millbrook one. Cardinal Gibbons — like Charlotte Catholic and Bishop McGuiness, another private school competing in the NCHSAA ranks — has won three 2-A crowns, including one today.
West of Wake, the numbers rise sharply. East Chapel Hill won its ninth crown today while Chapel Hill High won three 4-A titles in the early years of the dual-team championships.
Other strongholds besides Charlotte are Burlington, Greensboro, Hickory, Statesville, Elkin and Asheville.
Simply put, schools from western and central North Carolina dominate high school tennis in the state. When you take into consideration that Southern Nash is a rural school at which tennis still isn't deeply rooted, the Firebirds' achievement is pretty doggone awesome.
Joyner has managed to put together a juggernaut boys program in Stanhope but his latest group of seniors — Michael Barnes, Ethan Page, Nicolas Finet, Cody Brandt and Kyle Ramsey — has been his best. They've had quite a run over the past three springs.
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