When the final tennis ball came to rest on Wednesday evening the Boiling Springs tennis team had captured a 4-2 victory over Clover but most importantly had clinched the second seed from Region III-5A as well as a first round home playoff match.
The Bulldogs defeated Clover in a five set match because both teams had missed a match against each other earlier this season. "Our team came out and performed tonight knowing what was on the line," said Bulldogs head coach Jill Cooke. "Tonight they knew this could be two wins as we played five set matches to make up for a missed match earlier this season. Our kids have been resilient all season as they've overcome a bunch of different factors this season that weren't necessarily on our side but they battled through it all." Madison Ball led the way for the Bulldogs as she defeated Clover's Finley Wine (6-0, 6-1, 6-1) in number one singles to get the Bulldogs off to a 1-0 start in the match. Ball said that being able to reach the playoffs in her senior year and to host a playoff match is a special accomplishment. "It feels great to accomplish this my senior year," said Ball. "It's been a long time since we hosted a playoff match and do it my senior year is great because we've worked our butts off. When we first started doing all this work we couldn't understand why at first but to now see the hard work paying off is pretty cool. We've won a lot this year including the Eye Opener and now finishing second in the region has been great to do in my senior year." Sydney Braswell defeated Natalia Redshaw (6-1, 6-2, 6-2) in number two singles to give the Bulldogs their second victory in the match. In number three singles Emily Krechko grabbed a victory over Zoe Muiruri (6-0, 7-5, 6-2) as she battled back from down 3-0 in the second set to come back and grab the 7-5 set victory. The wins in the first three matches came from three of the four seniors and from a group that Cooke says has been instrumental to the success of the team this season. "This group of seniors have been tremendous as they've led this team both on and off the court," said Cooke. "They lead by example and always cheering the other players on, they really are a special group of girls." Boiling Springs sealed the victory in number two doubles as Victoria Leonard and Anna Lynn Faile defeated Addison Haas and Alaina Rinkes (6-1, 6-1, 6-2) to secure the Bulldogs their playoff spot. Cooke, who played under legendary Bulldogs tennis coach Randy Gregory, said that being able to help guide this team back to hosting a playoff game is special for many reasons. "It means a lot to me to get this program back to hosting a playoff game because to me these will always be Coach G courts," said Cooke. "He definitely set the bar high for the tennis program and he would absolutely be smiling about what these girls accomplished this season. They've raised the bar themselves and have worked hard to get to this point." Cooke also added that the leadership from senior captain Madison Ball has helped lead this team to where they are hosting a playoff match for the first time in years. "My favorite quote to her is: you'll always be my favorite number one," said Cooke. "She has so much potential and will do so many great things. As the captain she makes sure everyone stretches and that everyone is hitting right while not being afraid to tell them when they're not. She's like having another coach on the court and I will truly miss not having her here next year." The Bulldogs will open the 2021 5A tennis playoffs on Thursday (October 21st) against the number three seed from Region IV-5A, which at this time is still yet to be determined. Comments are closed.
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