Last Friday, September 19th, the Varsity Girls Tennis Team narrowly defeated Cary Christian with a final match score of 5-4. The singles games were close, and Sophomore Julia High and Senior Sabrina Morrison were the only two players that managed to win their singles matches. Julia won 6-3 in the first set and 6-1 in the second set at the number one position. Because of her powerful shots and consistency, Julia has had an undefeated conference season. When she first joined the Varsity team in eighth grade, she was immediately placed as the team’s number one seed. Because of the three years of experience on the team, Julia is able to defeat opponents that are much older than her. Sabrina Morrison, who won in a second-set tiebreak on Friday, is the team’s sixth seed this year. Because of her advantage as a left-handed player and well-placed shots, Sabrina has had a very successful season so far.

When the time came for doubles matches to begin, chances for winning the match were very slim. Coach Gayle High advised the players to “Be consistent, active at the net, and move forward.” While all three doubles games ended in victory for the Eagles,  each game was extremely close. Junior Samantha Sconyers and Sophomore Julia High won their match at the number one doubles position Friday with a score of 8-2. Julia commented, “I love playing with Sam [because] we’ve been playing together since JV and we have a ton of fun together.” As a result, their communication skills and tactics are unmatched by other opponents. At the number two doubles position, sisters Lindsey and Haven Ross won their match in a tiebreaker for the pro-set after all other games had come to a close. Haven’s powerful serve and Lindsey’s tactful volleys make these two a tough pair to beat. On the number three doubles court, Junior Elizabeth Gay and Senior Sabrina Morrison beat their opponents as well. Elizabeth and Sabrina play often together and work well as a team. When asked about her and Sabrina’s success, Elizabeth stated, “Because we have different strengths and weaknesses on the court, Sabrina and I are successful as a unit.”

Although the Cary Christian Eagles are not in our conference, their defeat will help the team place into the conference tournament in October. On Friday, September 26th, the Varsity Girls defeated Faith Christian School, their neighboring rivals, with an overall score of 7-2. This upcoming week, the Varsity Girls will face Kerr Vance Academy at 4:00 at home. This pivotal match against the team’s biggest competition in the conference will prove if the girls have a shot at becoming the 2014 Conference Champions.