State’s at stake

Published 12:07 am Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Last year’s state tennis tournament brackets did no favors for Dalton High’s boys or girls.

While competing in Class 4A, Dalton’s boys advanced to the second round before losing to eventual state champion McIntosh. The Lady Catamounts suffered an even worse fate, drawing private-school power Marist —which would go on to claim its 14th team title since 1995 — in the first round.

State is again right around the corner, but first Dalton’s teams will have to transition their hot play from the regular season to the Region 7-3A tournaments, which begin at 10 a.m. today at Lakeshore Park in Dalton. Along with Murray County’s boys and girls, the Cats and Lady Cats will compete, with Dalton also serving as the tourneys’ host.

The Cats are the No. 1 seed from the north sub-region and will take on Cedartown in the opening matches this morning, while Murray County’s boys are the No. 3 seed from the south and will play Heritage-Catoosa at 2:30 p.m. Dalton’s girls are the No. 2 seed from the north and will face Cedartown at 2:30 p.m., while the Lady Indians — the south’s No. 4 seed — will play against LaFayette at 10 a.m.

Today’s winners guarantee themselves of one of the top four seeds in the region and qualify for the state tournament, which begins next week. Region 7-3A semifinals, consolation finals and finals will be played Thursday at Lakeshore to determine seeding. The top two seeds will host in the first round of state, while the lower two seeds will travel in the first round.

Southeast Whitfield, the area’s only other team in the region, failed to finish in the top four of the south sub-region and did not qualify for the region tourneys.

Dalton coach David Hilley’s boys enter as a top seed, but this season they haven’t always been as dominant a team as in years past.

“We have a pretty good draw, but Cedartown is a good opponent for a chance to qualify for state,” Hilley said. “This has been a different year for us. We just haven’t been handed matches this year. We’ve had to really work to win that No. 1 seed.

“The other side is tough, but if we play well and do what we should do, we should play for the region title. But you never know.”

The Cats are 12-2, with their losses coming to south No. 1 seed Cartersville (a 3-2 defeat) and Tennessee’s Collegedale Academy.

“Moving down from 4A to 3A didn’t make anything any easier for us this year,” Hilley said. “But this year we expect to get back to state, and then it is up to them to do something when you get there.”

Dalton’s run this year has been especially impressive, though, because of a lack of senior-driven talent. No. 2 singles player Price Puryear is the lone senior on the squad, and he is joined in singles play by No. 1 Hunter Carson and No. 3 Nathan Bryant.

“Hunter has been solid all year at No. 1, but Price has struggled some this year, but he is just a fighter,” Hilley said. “Nathan has been solid at No. 3, but our doubles are really a lot stronger than they were last year. They are good teammates, but to get to the next level, we are going to have to keep getting better.”

The No. 1 doubles team of B.J. Rowland and Thomas DeLay and the No. 2 doubles pairing of P.K. Bhatter and Mitchell Wilson have been a surprising success for Hilley.

“A lot of time, you worry about the chemistry of your doubles teams, but I couldn’t be prouder of the way our two doubles teams have played this year,” he said. “You have to win your doubles in order to advance. Everyone has a really good singles player that can win a match for you, but doubles is really where most matches are won or lost.”

The Dalton girls have been more up and down this season with an 8-6 record, but their only sub-region loss came at the hands of No. 1 seed LaFayette. Despite the high seed, Hilley said his girls have their work cut out for them in order to make the state tournament.

“Honestly, the top four teams out of the south could win every match. They are just that tough,” he said. “This isn’t a gimme against Cedartown by any means. We have to play some solid tennis just to make it to state.”

While singles players Kara Pendley, Malaka Awad and Mary May Wilson have had good years, Hilley said he is counting on doubles victories from No. 1 Vivian Butler and Courtney Morton and No. 2 Sheridan Fromm and Jalika Joyner.

“I told the team that we are going to do it (make state),” said Joyner, a senior. “We are very determined to get back to state.”

Murray County’s boys finished in a three-way tie for second and ended up as the No. 3 seed based on the tiebreaker. In the girls tourney, all four of the south teams have had strong seasons.

“We’re in the mix, and that is all that we can ask for,” Murray County coach Coulter Redding said. “I was hoping that our girls would have been a little higher, but we have run into some stiff competition on our side of the region. We didn’t realize that Allatoona was as stout as they were. Both boys and girls, we have a tough sub-region and we feel like we are well-prepared to play in the tournament.”

The Indians have been led in singles play by No. 1 Zach Davis and No. 2 Noah Cleary. Redding credits the pair with “exceptional leadership,” as well as solid play on the court. The Lady Indians have solid singles players in Katie Quast at No. 1, freshman Allison Jones at No. 2 and senior Jade Mathis at No. 3.

“I didn’t expect the boys to have the season that we did,” Redding said. “They have certainly surprised some folks.”

Three other local prep tennis teams are also in action at other region tournaments today.

North Murray’s boys, who won then lost on Tuesday at the Region 7-2A tournament in Calhoun, play in that event’s consolation finals at 10 a.m. today.

Christian Heritage’s girls will compete in the Georgia Independent Schools Association’s Region 4-2A tournament at Furtah Prep in Acworth, while Northwest Whitfield’s girls will compete in the Region 7-4A tournament at Cherokee Tennis Center in Woodstock.

Northwest’s Lady Bruins, who are 3-10 and went 1-3 in league play this year, are the No. 4 seed from the north sub-region and will play south No. 1 Lambert at 2:30 p.m. They’ll need an upset to keep their season alive.

“They’re going to be really tough, but we’re looking forward to it anyway,” Lady Bruins coach Charmin Kesler said. “We’ve got a great group of girls this year.”

Northwest’s boys did not qualify for the region tournament, while North Murray’s girls were eliminated from the Region 7-2A tourney on Tuesday.