Runaway winners

Oxford boys, Donoho girls dominate singles play, win Calhoun County team titles by wide margins

CALHOUN COUNTY TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS
TEAM SCORES
Boys: Oxford 51, Donoho 24, Jacksonville 13, Pleasant Valley 7, Faith Christian 2.
Girls: Donoho 49, Oxford 26, Faith Christian 24, Jacksonville 17, Pleasant Valley 2.

By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today

OXFORD – Usually you win and then go to Disney World. The Donoho girls tennis team did the drill in reverse.

The Lady Falcons just got back from an intersession trip to Disney World, arriving for the Calhoun County Tennis Championships at Oxford Lake mere hours before the start of their doubles matches Friday night. Despite being road weary and not having touched a racquet in a week, they blew through Saturday’s singles matches and won the County girls title for the second year in a row in a runaway.

The Oxford boys, meanwhile, had none of those hardships and continued the domination they began Friday night, winning their title in a runaway as well.

Both champions won five of six singles finals. Donoho’s girls went 13-1 on the day, losing only the No. 1 singles final, and scored 49 total points. Oxford’s boys, after winning all three doubles titles on Friday, went 12-1 in singles, losing only the No. 6 finals, and scored 51 points.

“We were all nervous because we hadn’t practiced in a week and had to come out here and play consecutive matches,” Lady Falcons No. 2 singles champion Emma Wiedmer said. “But it was really fun because we got to win all this, but then we just got back from an even more fun trip.”

Donoho rarely played in the event before it became an official county championship last year because it usually fell during their intersession. They only got it in last year – and won — because their trips during the term were scheduled to end a couple days before the tournament began.

This time they took it right down to the wire.

“They all came in yesterday,” Donoho coach Laurie Rigsby said. “They didn’t pick up a tennis racquet (all week); they didn’t have time to pick up a tennis racquet until the night they were all dropped off here. That’s why I’m happy for them they did so well, they came out here and played that well without any practice this week. Think how much even better they would have been with practice, and they did pretty well.”

In addition to Wiedmer, the Lady Falcons got titles from Virginia Hutto, Hadley Smith, Marella Hudson and Claire Walker. Smith and Walker had to win three matches to claim their crowns.

Oxford’s Abbie White prevented the Lady Falcons from scoring a complete sweep in the finals when she beat their lone senior, Wittney Brown, 10-2 at No. 1. When Ben Reimer took out Donoho’s Cooper Montgomery 10-7, it gave the Yellow Jackets a sweep of the premier No. 1 singles spots.

The Oxford boys also got titles from Chase White, Jake Hammond, Landon Macoy and Jeremiah Wyatt. In all, the Yellow Jackets won eight of nine possible championships. The only they loss was the contention No. 6 singles, and that was 11-9.

Reimer’s championship match was tight throughout and he never felt quite in control until he won the game to go up 9-7 for the first two-game lead of the match. He was “really impressed” with the showing his teammates gave this weekend.

“It’s very impressive,” Oxford coach Jesse Martin said. “I didn’t think that would happen. I didn’t think we would do that. I had really good expectations of coming out and competing really well, but I was thinking it was going to be closer than that. They were well prepared. We’ve got two matches under our belt and a few weeks of practice and I think everybody was ready; they were wanting to play. It really was an overall team effort. Everybody played great.”

As a senior not expecting to play collegiate tennis when she goes to Jacksonville State for nursing, White realizes she has a finite number of opportunities left this season for success and nothing short of her best will be acceptable. She admitted being nervous when her finals match was tied at two games apiece, but she shook those emotions and won the last eight games to claim the match and the title.

“I do think about that a good bit, actually,” White said. “I know this is my last season, so I have to give it all I’ve got and go out with a bang.”

SATURDAY’S SINGLES BRACKET
BOYS
No. 1
(5) Michael Kulick, Faith Christian def, (4) Caleb Kirk, Pleasant Valley, 10-8
(2) Cooper Montgomery, Donoho def, (3) Jesse Wilson, Jacksonville, 10-8
(1) Ben Reimer, Oxford won by forfeit
Finals: Reimer, Oxford, def. Montgomery, Donoho, 10-7

No. 2
(5) Ben Patterson, Jacksonville def. (4) Jac Myrick, Faith Christian, 10-5
(3) David Hudson, Donoho def. (2) Dakota Herron, Pleasant Valley, 10-1
(1) Chase White, Oxford def, Patterson, Jacksonville, 10-4
Finals: White, Oxford def. Hudson, Donoho, 10-6

No. 3
(4) Jake Hammond, Oxford def. (5) Chandler Armstrong, Faith Christian, 10-0
(3) Jake Walker, Donoho (2) def. Dawson Meadows, Pleasant Valley, 10-3
Hammond, Oxford def. (1) Cole Gaddy, Jacksonville, 10-8
Finals: Hammond, Oxford def. Walker, Donoho, 10-6

No. 4
(4) Brett Noah, Jacksonville def. (5) Norwood Hodges, Donoho, 10-2
(2) Trent Findley, Pleasant Valley def. (3) Dawson Camp, Faith Christian, 10-2
(1) Landon Macoy, Oxford def. Noah, Jacksonville, 10-3
Finals: Macoy, Oxford def. Findley, Pleasant Valley, 10-1

No. 5
(4) Jeremiah Wyatt, Oxford def. (1) Reed Fulmer, Pleasant Valley, 10-1
(3) Harrison Han, Donoho def. (2) Ammon Record, Jacksonville, 10-6
Finals: Wyatt, Oxford def. Han, Donoho, 10-4

No. 6
(1) Gray Hanley, Donoho def. (4) Dakota Parr, Pleasant Valley, 10-1
(3) Seth Turner, Oxford def. (2) Braden Hodge, Jacksonville, 10-2
Finals: Hanley, Donoho def. Turner, Oxford, 11-9

GIRLS
No. 1
(4) Abby Emerson, Faith Christian def. (5) Karina Jones, Pleasant Valley, 10-7.
(3) Abbie White, Oxford def. (2) Sarah Lumpkin, Jacksonville, 10-2
(1) Wittney Brown, Donoho def. Emerson, Faith Christian, 10-3
Finals: White, Oxford def. Brown, Donoho, 10-2

No. 2
(4) Kristen Peck, Pleasant Valley def. (5) Rachel Williams, Jacksonville, 11-10 (7-5)
(2) Emma Wiedmer, Donoho def. (3) Regan Crosby, Faith Christian, 10-5
(1) Analeigh Adams, Oxford def. Peck, Pleasant Valley, 10-0
Finals: Wiedmer, Donoho def. Adams, Oxford, 10-4

No. 3
(4) Zana Christjohn, Faith Christian def. (5) Dailee Mickler, Pleasant Valley, 10-4
(3) Virginia Hutto, Donoho def, (2) Kaelyn Albright, Oxford, 10-5
Christjohn, Faith Christian def. (1) Katee Waugh, Jacksonville, 10-0
Finals: Hutto, Donoho def. Christjohn, Faith Christian, 10-5

No. 4
(4) Hadley Smith, Donoho def, (5) Abigail Pratt, Oxford, 10-4
(3) Alex Billups, Jacksonville def, (2) Destiny Conley, Pleasant Valley, 11-9
Smith, Donoho def. (1) Janay Caver, Faith Christian, 10-4
Finals: Smith, Donoho def. Billups, Jacksonville 10-4

No. 5
(5) Abigail Poore, Oxford def. (4) Macie Bryant, Pleasant Valley, 10-0
(3) Marella Hudson, Donoho def, (2) Natalie Patterson, Jacksonville, 10-3
Poore, Oxford def. (1) Sarah Jane Christjohn, Faith Christian, 9-9 (retired)
Finals: Hudson, Donoho def. Poore, Oxford, 10-2

No. 6
(5) Claire Walker, Donoho def. (4) Cornelia Simpson, Faith Christian, 11-9
(3) Molly Wilson, Jacksonville def. (2) Caroline Rogers, Oxford, 10-3
Walker, Donoho def. (1) Haley Hunt, Pleasant Valley, 10-0
Finals: Walker, Donoho def. Wilson, Jacksonville, 10-7

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