Panther men’s tennis will be represented at the State Individual Tournament.
On the first week of May, Sammy Gunter’s team had a busy slate of matches, including the first round of the Dual Team State Playoffs and the 3A West Individual Tournament. After upsetting fourth-ranked Central Davidson early in the week, sophomores Jack Sgro, Mica Jacobs and Gavin Rinker traveled to the 3A West Regional, where Sgro and Jacobs punched their tickets to the State Championship May 12-13.
On Wednesday, May 3, the Panthers traveled to Lexington for their first-round Dual Team Playoff matchup with Central Davidson. Ranked No. 13 in the 3A West Region with a 10-4 record this regular season, Franklin faced a tough matchup on paper in the Spartans, who accrued a 9-1 record to earn the region’s No. 4 seed. In singles however, it was the Panthers who looked more deserving of the No. 4 seed.
“After a long bus ride and very windy conditions, I didn’t know how we would perform against the Mid-Piedmont Conference Champions with a 9-1 record,” said Gunter of the match in Davidson County. “The guys really showed up. Jack Sgro, Mica and Gavin played through their opponents with relative ease with just a few rough bumps. Conner [Baldwin] had a long, physical match with long rallies and momentum shifts before winning the first set. However, this took a toll on the Central Davidson player, who developed leg cramps and could not continue.”
In the top three spots, Sgro, Jacobs and Rinker did not allow their opponents more than three total games, with Jacobs winning in shutout fashion 6-0, 6-0. With Baldwin winning his first set 6-4 before his opponent retired at No. 6, Franklin claimed four of the day’s six matches in singles, needing just one of three matches in doubles for the overall victory. There, Sgro/Jacobs and Rinker/Eli Adams both blew out their opponents 8-1.
“In doubles No. 1, Jack/Mica basically overpowered and had better placement at the net to prevail,” said Gunter. “At No. 2 Gavin/Eli played their best match of the season, as they set each other up at the net and volleyed away balls with authority to run away with the match. No. 3 doubles played well but fell short in the end. I was proud of the effort produced by our guys, but we have to keep working if we want to keep advancing in the playoffs.”
After upsetting the fourth-ranked Spartans, on Friday, May 5 Franklin’s top three individuals traveled to Hickory for the 3A West Regional Individual Tournament. Having placed in the top four of the Mountain Seven Conference Tournament April 24-25, Rinker and the doubles pair of Sgro/Jacobs locked horns with other top conference finishers from across the region. While Rinker received an unlucky first-round draw in singles, falling 6-0, 6-0 to the region’s defending champion from South Point, Sgro and Jacobs found a bit more success.
“Conference champions Jack Sgro/Mica Jacobs were selected as the No. 4 seed in the draw for doubles,” said Gunter of the regional tournament. “The duo first played a team from Fred T. Ford High School and won 6-3, 6-3. In the second round they faced a team from South Point who had a different style of play which gave us fits by staying two back at the baseline, but [on] any short ball they would hit big forehands. Losing 2-6 in the first set and trailing 4-5 in the second, we finally adjusted by chipping and charging the net to finally take control and won the last 9 games to qualify for state.”
Due in part to their unconventional style of playing back from the net, the pair from South Point kept the Panthers on their toes, cutting off their angles for shots to come within a game of victory. With their backs against the wall however, Sgro and Jacobs found South Pont’s weakness, attacking the undefended spaces near the net. With their dramatic, come-from-behind win over the Raiders, Sgro and Jacobs advanced to the Regional Semifinal the next day, earning a spot in this weekend’s State Individual Tournament in Burlington.
On Saturday, Sgro and Jacobs returned to Hickory City Park, where they locked horns with the other best pairs in the region.
“On Saturday playing for regional seeding purposes, the guys played the No. 1 seed from Hickory, losing 6-0, 6-2,” said Gunter. “The final match was against the No. 2 seed from St. Stephens High School. In the first set, we got off to a slow start and were down 0-3 before finally clawing our way back to 3-3. From there it was nip and tuck until 6-6. The ensuing tie break was also back and forth until we had a chance to win at 7-6, but missed the shot and they won the last 2 points. In the second set we got out front early to win 6-2. The 3rd set was again close as both teams traded excellent shots and untimely errors. At 5-5 we played steadier to pull out the victory to qualify as the No. 3 seed from the region to advance to the 3A state playoffs in Burlington this Friday.”
With a narrow win over St. Stephens to claim the region’s No. 3 seed, Sgro and Jacobs will travel to Burlington as Franklin’s first State Championship men’s doubles pair in recent memory. Before thinking about a state title however, the sophomores are tasked with helping their team to their second straight Dual Team Playoff upset, traveling to fifth-ranked Atkins after press time Tuesday, May 9.