Panther women’s tennis has secured their third straight conference title.
On the week of Oct. 7 Heather Bell’s team faced a busy slate of matches, playing their last match of the regular season and the Mountain Seven Conference Tournament. With strong showings versus Smoky Mountain and at Western Carolina University, Franklin capped their third-straight unbeaten season and their third straight doubles title in the conference.
Having postponed their Sept. 30 match with Smoky due to Hurricane Helene, on Oct. 7 the team welcomed the Mustangs to Franklin for a joint Senior Night match. After honoring both teams’ seniors including Franklin’s top four players, the rivals rehashed Franklin’s 9-0 win over the Mustangs in Sylva Sept. 4.
The rematch looked much the same as the teams’ first meeting, with Franklin cruising to easy wins in five of their six singles matches. At Nos. 2, 3 and 6, Abigail Angel, Maci Stork and Marlee Barnes each beat their opponents 6-0, 6-0, while Kate Phillips (#1), Caroline Deal (#4) and Clara Stork (#5) also won in straight sets.
In doubles Franklin’s four seniors made quick work of the Mustangs once again, with Phillips/Angel winning 8-2 at #1 and Deal/Maci Stork winning 8-3 at #2. At #3 Barnes and Clara Stork faced Franklin’s toughest match of the day, but prevailed 8-5 to complete a 9-0 rout.
With their tenth 9-0 win of the season, Franklin improved to 12-1 overall and 11-0 in the Mountain Seven, claiming their third straight conference regular season title. An Oct. 2 rematch of Franklin’s Sept. 9 home win over West Henderson was cancelled due to damage from Helene in Henderson County. The Falcons dealt Franklin their last regular-season conference loss Oct. 9, 2021.
With the conference regular-season title in hand, two days later the Panthers traveled to WCU for the Mountain Seven Individual Tournament. There Franklin’s four seniors entered the tournament’s doubles bracket, with Barnes and Clara Stork taking part in singles.
With their teammates earning first-round byes as the top-seeded pairs in the conference, Barnes and Stork took the court first for Franklin, winning convincingly 6-1, 6-3; and 6-1, 6-0, respectively.
In Round 2 Barnes drew a tough opponent in Tuscola’s Sierra Sellars, the singles tournament’s top seed and reigning Conference Champion. There Sellars prevailed 6-2, 6-1.
“Marlee played her heart out till the very last point but had a tough draw,” said Bell of the junior following the tournament. “She has improved so much this year and look forward to watching her continue growing.”
On the other side of the bracket Stork drew Pisgah’s Ella Tiller, the tournament’s third seed and Pisgah’s top player in singles. After winning a hard-fought first set 6-4, the junior cruised to a surprising 6-0 win in the second to advance to the semifinals. As a top-four finisher in the conference, she earned a berth to the 3A West Region Individual Tournament, to be played at Hickory City Park Oct. 18-19.
As the only two pairs to earn first-round byes in doubles, Phillips/Angel and Maci Stork/Deal made quick work of their Round 2 opponents, winning 6-0, 6-0 and 6-1, 6-1, respectively to advance to the semis.
The next morning the team returned to WCU for the tourney’s second day, where Clara Stork met West Henderson’s top player, Shea Sullivan. There Sullivan prevailed 6-2, 6-3 to advance to the final. Stork then met Sellars in the third-place match, and fell 6-0, 6-2 to earn the conference’s fourth seed at regionals.
“Clara pulled off a pretty big upset to secure her spot in the singles draw,” said Bell of Stork’s win over Tiller. “She handled herself with confidence and class throughout the tournament no matter what level of opponent was across the net from her.”
In doubles Phillips and Angel also met West in the semifinals, routing Amani Moraga-Pizarro and Jaden Suttles 6-0, 6-1. On the other side Maci Stork and Deal met Smoky Mountain’s Braelyn Mulligan and Kailey Broom, and won 6-2, 6-0 to advance to an all-Panther doubles final. The win marked the second straight year two Panther pairs have met in the final, after Laura and Lydia Holland defeated Maci Stork and Logan Guynn last fall.
There Phillips and Angel prevailed 6-2, 6-4, earning Franklin’s third Mountain Seven doubles title in three years. Phillips will graduate this summer as a two-time tournament champion, after helping Alyssa Smith win the doubles title in 2022. As top-three finishers in the conference, both doubles pairs also earned regional tournament berths.
“All the girls handled their nerves quite well and did a good job staying in the moment. I am proud of the level of play they brought to the tournament but even more proud of the quality of sportsmen they were to their opponents,” said Bell of her team’s play at the tournament. “Abigail and Kate showed up with some of the best doubles I’ve seen them play, stepping up their communication as a team. Caroline and Maci have proven to be smart and steady while continuing to hone their abilities. I look forward to seeing what all these girls will be able to accomplish in the coming weeks.”
While normally the Panthers would have played their first dual team playoff match the next week, on Oct. 9 the N.C. High School Athletic Association extended the fall sports season by a week due to damage from Helene. While regional individual tournament dates were unchanged, the Panthers will now play their first dual team state playoff match Oct. 21, with tournament brackets to be released Oct. 18. As of press time Oct. 14, Franklin was the ninth-ranked team in the 3A West Region, just ahead of #10 West Henderson.
“With the postponement of playoffs by a week it’s important to keep the girls refreshed and focused,” said Bell of the team’s preparation for the state playoffs. “At this point in the season the focus becomes one practice at a time, and with everything going forward being single elimination, it becomes one match at a time. This team has so much potential and each of them has great work ethic as well as a competitive spirit, so I look forward to what we will be able to accomplish, as a team and for them individually.”