Rock Hill girls advance to 5A state tennis final with 4-2 win over T.L. Hanna
The Rock Hill Bearcats defeated the T.L. Hanna Yellow Jackets 4-2 in a hard-fought girls’ tennis match to win the Class 5A Upper State Championship at Rock Hill High School on Monday.
The win sends the Bearcats (18-0) against the Dutch Fork Silver Foxes in the state title match at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Cayce Tennis Center.
“We are ecstatic right now,” said Rock Hill coach Scott Neely. “This is unbelievable, and it is another total team win. I am so very proud of our players’ efforts tonight.”
The Bearcats have been solid throughout the lineup all season, and they needed it on Monday to beat T.L. Hanna of Anderson.
“Our number four and five singles, and number two doubles came through again for us tonight,” said Neely. “T.L. Hanna was an extremely tough opponent, as I knew they would be.”
The match was close all the way. Rock Hill took a 1-0 lead when DeAlva Alston beat Addie Anderson in straight sets at number four singles. The Bearcats went up 2-0 after Lillian Vyas toppled Summer Robinson in straight sets at number five singles.
T.L. Hanna cut the deficit to 2-1 when Lauren Anderson edged Shakendra Alston at number three singles, with Anderson winning the match on a tiebreaker.
Rock Hill inched closer to the next round, taking a 3-1 lead as Robin Alston defeated Corbin Dorsey at number one singles. Alston came back from a 3-1 deficit in the first set to win, and then won the second set, which went to a tiebreaker.
The Bearcats wrapped it up by winning the number two doubles match. The Rock Hill team of Sydney McCraw and Gabby Loflin had to win the tiebreaker to defeat Jillian Spencer and Ashlen Chapman.
Hanna’s Kristen Reynolds used the tiebreaker to win at number two singles over Anna Sharp after the match had been decided.
“We played our hearts out tonight, and we almost got it done,” said T.L. Hanna coach Rob Spencer, whose team won the Region 1 title and finished 18-3. “We battled from behind all night. Things just did not fall our way in the tiebreakers.”
Singles
No. 1 - Robin Alston (RH) def. Corbin Dorsey 6-4, 7-6 (7-5); No. 2 - Kristen Reynolds (H) def. Anna Sharp 5-7, 6-2, 10-6; No .3 - Lauren Anderson (H) def. Shakendra Alston 6-4, 4-6, 10-6; No. 4 - DeAlva Alston (RH) def. Addie Anderson 6-2, 6-1; No. 5 - Lillian Vyas (RH) def. Summer Robinson 6-0, 6-2.
Doubles
No. 2 - Sydney McCraw/Gabby Loflin (RH) def. Jillian Spencer/Ashlen Chapman 6-2, 4-6, 10-2.
This story was originally published November 7, 2016 at 9:43 PM with the headline "Rock Hill girls advance to 5A state tennis final with 4-2 win over T.L. Hanna."