Photo Credit: Brianna Hales. Corey Johnson (right) hits a forehand. Lee Oechsle is patiently waiting for the ball (left). [/caption]As the men’s tennis season comes into full swing, the team is off to a good start with a record of 3-3 in the overall season and 2-2 in the Big Eight Conference. The team this year has played Eastern Alamance (9-0), Cardinal Gibbons (0-9), Northwood (5-4), Voyager Academy (1-8), and Northern Vance (7-2). But it is still the very beginning of the season, and the players and Coach Webb remain optimistic about the rest of the season. With a strong starting team and a new member coming onto the team, the boys are more ready than ever to play every game with hopes of a win.
The boys had a very decisive first victory over Eastern Alamance High School and swept a clean 9-0 win. Starters included Jaden Vines, Jabari Hargrove, Corey Johnson, Lee Oechsle, Ben Pickard, and Grayson Caudill.
The men’s tennis team fell 0-9 to Cardinal Gibbons, one of the best teams in the conference and the state, the following week playing at Orange. They played this match as a double header and lost both matches. Despite their 0-9 losses to Cardinal Gibbons, Coach Webb remains optimistic about the season and the players. “So far the team has been performing very well,” he said. When asked specifically about things going well this season, Webb bragged about his second-positioned player Jabari Hargrove. “Jabari Hargrove is having a great sophomore year, only losing singles matches to Cardinal Gibbons.”
[caption id="attachment_4462" align="alignright" width="360"]
Photo Credit: Brianna Hales. Jaden Vines runs to hit a volley.[/caption]Friday night, the Panthers hosted Voyager Academy in their sixth match of the season. Even though they lost with a final score of 1-8, Webb is still excited for the rest of the season.
“I'm looking forward to the team improving as the season goes along,” Webb said when asked what he is most excited about for the rest of the season. “We really need to improve our doubles play to close out matches when they are close.”
“We need to win the matches we are expected to win and then steal a win when we have an opportunity to do so,” Webb said when asked how someone could expect them to do the rest of the season. The boys are in a very tough conference and have a hard season ahead of them, but it won’t stop the players and coach from remaining optimistic.
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