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The Parry McCluer High School girls tennis team finished the regular season undefeated at 12-0, earning a 5-4 home win over Rockbridge County on Monday of last week before winning 6-3 at Bath County last Tuesday.
Against the Wildcats (3-12) on the hot evening at the Southern Virginia University courts, the Fighting Blues completed a sweep of the season series. PM had also won 5-4 when the rivals met in the season opener on March 15 in Lexington.
In the rematch, the Blues won two of three doubles matches and three of six singles contests. At No. 1 singles, PM junior Addisen Roberts defeated RC senior Sophia Fafatas 8-5 to avenge a 9-7 loss in their previous meeting to clinch the team win. Roberts teamed up with senior Sadie Mays, who was honored before the match, to earn an 8-5 win over Fafatas and freshman Corinna Allen.
Other Blues winning singles matches were junior Olive King at No. 3 and Shafer at No. 4. Wildcats winning singles matches were senior Sara Topasna at No. 2, sophomore Sydney Remington with a 9-8 (7-3 tiebreak) win at No. 5 over sophomore Peira Conner, and sophomore Julia Newhall at No. 6. “Peira had a great fight,” said first-year PM head coach Alyssa Sewell.
Sewell said the victory over the Wildcats was an “excellent match” and a “great win.”
In the final match of the regular season on Tuesday of last week, the Blues earned a 6-3 road win over Pioneer District foe Bath County. In their previous meeting, the Blues had beaten Bath 5-4 at PM on April 13.
Last Tuesday, the Blues won four of six singles matches and two of three doubles matches.
The highlight was Roberts overcoming a large deficit to win 8-6 at No. 1 singles over Sadie Alphin. When they’d faced off on April 13, Alphin had won 8-1.
Praising Roberts for her performance last Tuesday, Sewell said, “Addisen had the biggest comeback I had ever seen. … So proud. Go Blue!”
The Blues will play host to Bath County in the Pioneer District team tournament today, Wednesday, at 10 a.m. at the SVU courts. The district singles and doubles tournaments will take place at SVU on Friday, starting at 10 a.m.
In Valley District tournament action last week, senior Sophia Fafatas competed in the singles tournament last Tuesday, and she teamed up with Corinna Allen to compete in the doubles tournament on Tuesday. Both tournaments took place at Turner Ashby.
Fafatas faced Spotswood’s Raygan Wade in the singles semifinals and suffered a 6-1, 6-0 loss.
“Sophia played so great, her best match of the season by far,” said second-year RC head coach Andrew Bellairs. “Raygan just had one heck of a match.”
Wade went on to beat Turner Ashby’s Kate Jones for the district titles.
In the doubles tournament, Fafatas and Allen lost to Wade and teammate Ella Li 6-0, 6-0 in the semifinals. Wade and Li went on to beat TA’s Jones and Jolexie Whetzel for the district title.
The Wildcats finished the season 3-12 overall and 0-7 in the district.
RC will miss its two seniors, Fafatas and Sara Topasna, who played at No. 2 singles.
Praising Fafatas, RC’s leader throughout the year, Bellairs said, “There is no better kid to represent our school. She is just the kind of student-athlete we want. She excels in the classroom, in her sports, and she’s so kind and an amazing teammate. We are all very proud of her and how she represented us in districts.”
For the Blues’ tournament updates, visit www.thenewsgazette. com.
PM 5, RC 4
SINGLES – Addisen Roberts (PM) d. Sophia Fafatas (RC) 8-5; Sara Topasna (RC) d. Sadie Mays (RC) 8-5; Olive King (PM) d. Corinna Allen (RC) 8-5; Macy Shafer (PM) d. Eleanor Goodhart (RC) 8-4; Sydney Remington (RC) d. Peira Conner 9-8 (7-3 tiebreak); Julia Newhall (RC) d. Marley Convers (PM) 8-0.
DOUBLES – Roberts and Mays (PM) d. Fafatas and Allen (RC) 8-5; King and Shafer (PM) d. Topasna and Goodhart (RC) 8-5; Remington and Katherine Lotts (RC) d. Conner and Peyton Chittum (PM) 8-4.
PM 6, BC 3
SINGLES – Roberts (PM) d. Sadie Alphin (PM) 8-6; Mays (PM) d. Abbey Phillips (BC); King (PM) d. Brooke Hess (BC); Shafer (PM) d. Jess Ingram (BC) 8-1; Allison Hess (BC) d. Conner (PM) 8-2; MaKenna Ailstock (BC) d. Marley Convers (PM) 8-0; DOUBLES – Roberts and Mays (PM) d. Alphin and Phillips (BC) 8-5; King and Shafer (PM) d. Ingram and Kelsey Eaton (BC) 8-1; Allison Hess and Ailstock (PM) d. Conner and Peyton Chittum (PM) 8-0.
