Tennis takes individual, team state titles

Winning seems to be the norm for the tennis team. The team won the Class 5A state championship, the 5th consecutive state championships for the Chargers. Head coach Louis Nash says the wins come through hard work.

“We work at it far more than others and we have some great people teaching the game to all ages,” Nash said. “We are not as quite as strong at the top, but better throughout the line-up.”

 Individual State Titles

The team began the championship week at the Ridgeland Tennis Center, where several of the Oxford players competed in the state individual championship matches.  Freshman Quinn Elliott represented Oxford in the boys singles.  Elliott advanced to the fourth and final round, but lost 4-6, 6-2, 4-6.

Anne Marie Edlin competed in the girls singles individual championship and won both Round 1 and 2 but was defeated in the 3rd round.  The girls doubles team of Embry Inman and Kara Rose and the team of McClellan Davis and Sarah Nash also competed in the individual championship tournament.  Inman and Rose placed second while Davis and Nash made it to the 3rd round.  The Mixed Doubles team of Judson Watson and Cari Hansen also placed 2nd in the tournament.

The doubles team of Baxter Elliott and Will Swindoll advanced to the doubles finals, where, they met their teammates, Andrew Mullen and Robert Nance.  Elliott and Swindoll pulled out the victory, resulting in Oxford taking home both gold and silver.

After the individual matches, the team traveled to Clinton for the team championship where the Chargers won after a 3-3 tiebreaker with Stone County.

 Team Matches

Baxter Elliott competed in the boys singles match but was defeated 6-7, 2-6.  Ann Marie Edlin also lost the girls singles match 3-6, 0-6.  Both of the boys doubles groups came back to help rally Oxford.  The girls doubles group consisting of Embry Inman and Kara Rose won both of their matches 6-3, 6-0 which put the score between Oxford and Stone County at 3-3.

During the final match, seniors Judson Watson and Cari Hansen put pressure on both sides of the court.  They lost their first set 3-6, but bounced back with a 6-4 win, setting up a tiebreaker situation.

The couple won 10-5 tiebreaker, thus winning the game, match and ultimately giving Oxford another Class 5A state title.