This past Friday and Saturday, both the boys’ and girls’ tennis teams competed for individual glory at Jerry Cline in Albuquerque. Competitors had to choose between playing singles or doubles.
Friday proved to be a long day for Pirate Tennis. Everyone competing could play up to three matches that day. The first matches of the day were played in the cold, wind, and even hail. By the end of the day, the New Mexico sunshine and heat forced competitors to reach for hydration. For the boys, the doubles team of Isaiah Tena and Joshuah Sausa won all three matches and the honor of playing for first on Saturday.
For the Lady Pirates, six of our contenders won enough matches to make it to Saturday’s competition. The doubles team of Alexia Munson and Karsyn Cash lost to eventual winner Belen, but still earned a bid for third place. Chloe Rychener and Kylette Garcia swept the competition to earn a spot in the first-place match. Annaliesa Lowther and Abriyah Urioste found themselves playing against each other at the end of Friday. Lowther won that match earning a chance at first, while Urioste still received an opportunity to compete for third.
On Saturday, the finals commenced. The boys’ doubles team of Tena and Sausa lost to Miyamura earning second place. For the Lady Pirates, Lowther fell to Fiedacan of Miyamura to earn second place. Urisote came up short against Lopez of Highland for fourth place. The doubles team of Munson/Cash defeated Matkovich/Situ of Miyamura for third. Rychener/Garcia lost to Jaramillo/Fragua of Belen to finish in second.
Both teams see action this week for the State tournaments. The boys’ doubles team of Tena and Sausa will play on May 3rd, at 3:00 PM at Albuquerque Academy. The Lady Pirate doubles teams of Rychener/Garcia and Munson/Cash start playing at 3:00pm May 3rd at Albuquerque Academy. Annaliesa Lowther will start playing in the singles bracket at 4:30pm. The Lady Pirates ended up earning the fifth seed in state for 4A. They will start the team competition on May 5th at Sierra Vista against twelfth ranked Los Alamos.