Sports Update
Race to the top: Collins' victory punches West's ticket to state
BY Kevin Hageland, khageland@starlocalnews.com
Austin Westlake was seeded No. 1 over the weekend at the Region II Tennis Tournament while Plano West was No. 2.
When asked if that was the correct order, Wolves head coach Morgen Walker replied, "Guess we'll find out."
He was right.
The two-day, 16-team tournament came down to Westlake and West Saturday afternoon with the Wolves qualifying for their third straight Class 5A State Tournament after a straight-set victory from sophomore Race Collins secured a 10-9 win from the Tyler Tennis and Swim Center.
"This team showed a lot of grit," Walker said. "It was time to step up and the kids came through with flying colors."
That was the second match of the day for West, which defeated Klein in the regional semifinals. Klein had beaten West in the 2007 regional finals, but the Wolves were able to grind out a 10-8 win to start Saturday.
"Klein was tough, just like they always are," Walker said. "But we knew what we had and figured we would be a tough matchup for them."
The length of the match didn't give West much time to rest before the finals.
"We had about an hour between matches," Walker said. "We were able to go grab a sandwich and then get back to the site."
The Wolves didn't appear sluggish in the finals though as they took a 4-3 lead in doubles with the wins from Collins-senior Jason Jung (No. 2 boys), sophomore Anshul Pandey-freshman Titus Strom (No. 3 boys), freshmen Brittany Bennett-Tori Simmons (No. 3 girls) and seniors Adam Mlynarczyk-Maddy Thompson (mixed). Seeing those names in the win column was a theme of the weekend as Pandey-Strom, Bennett-Simmons and Mlynarczyk-Thompson all went 4-0 in doubles.
Getting to 4-0 was no easy feat for the mixed team though.
West won the first set, 6-4, and dropped the second, 6-3, before taking a commanding 4-1 lead in the third. The Wolves had an overhead for 5-1, but missed it and soon a tiebreak was necessary. The breaker would go the way of the Wolves, 8-6.
"That was a huge match," Walker said. "Obviously you feel good being up, 4-3, whereas if we are down 4-3, then we're in trouble.
West still found itself in trouble with deficits of 7-4 and 9-6.
"I think I was the only one who wasn't nervous," Walker said.
The Wolves pulled within 9-8 on the strength of straight-set singles wins by senior Sean Slater (No. 2 boys), Pandey (No. 5 boys), Strom (No. 6 boys) and sophomore Rubina Sarwal (No. 6 girls). Those victories capped a 6-0 slate for Pandey, Strom and Sarwal. The only West player with a better record was Simmons (No. 5 girls), who went 7-0 at regionals with the final triumph (6-4, 7-6) pulling the match even, 9-9.
"At that point everyone sprinted over to the last court," Walker said.
That last court was occupied by Collins, who had already won the first set, 7-6, and held a 5-2 lead in the second.
"Race took all the drama out of it," Walker said. "He dropped the hammer, finished up and the kids mobbed him."
Collins won the next game to capture the set, match, dual match and a trip to College Station.
"Winning 10-0 is always nice," Walker said, "but being in a 9-9 match and seeing both sides scratching for that 10th point. That's what you play for; that's what team tennis is all about."
West saw its share of 10-0 matches in Tyler, defeating Round Rock McNeil and Longview by that margin in the first two rounds Friday. The only impediment the team ran into came via rain delays.
West's first match was pushed back five hours.
"We hopped back on the bus and threw Top Gun in," Walker said before wryly adding, "That'll get you fired up."
Goose and Maverick won't be needed for motivation during the team's next stop as West travels to the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center on the campus of Texas A&M for the Class 5A State Tournament.
"We've won district and now we've won regionals," Walker said. "But these are just steps on the way to our ultimate goal."
The Wolves have reached that ultimate goal four times. However, West hasn't won a match at state since the last of its three straight titles in 2006, losing semifinals in 2008, 2010 and 2011.
"You could use that for motivation," Walker said, "but you can't expect the kids who weren't there to understand what those losses felt like for the kids that were there."
The loss in 2010 came against Houston Memorial, which is West's semifinals opponent at 1 p.m. Friday. Memorial (17-0) has been to the state finals the past two seasons and been ranked No. 1 for much of 2012 after losing only one player from last year. The Wolves (23-2) have been No. 2 for the bulk of the season.
If West gets past Memorial, it would likely play New Braunfels in the finals at 1 p.m. Saturday. The Unicorns, who are playing El Paso Coronado in Friday's other semifinal, beat the Wolves in College Station last season and have won five straight state titles.
Despite those odds, the Wolves remain confident.
"I always feel like we can win at state," Walker said. "We've won state titles before and you almost always need a little luck or something to go your way. I think that will be the case again this year, but you can't just wait for that opportunity, you have to go out and make things happen."
When asked if that was the correct order, Wolves head coach Morgen Walker replied, "Guess we'll find out."
He was right.
The two-day, 16-team tournament came down to Westlake and West Saturday afternoon with the Wolves qualifying for their third straight Class 5A State Tournament after a straight-set victory from sophomore Race Collins secured a 10-9 win from the Tyler Tennis and Swim Center.
"This team showed a lot of grit," Walker said. "It was time to step up and the kids came through with flying colors."
That was the second match of the day for West, which defeated Klein in the regional semifinals. Klein had beaten West in the 2007 regional finals, but the Wolves were able to grind out a 10-8 win to start Saturday.
"Klein was tough, just like they always are," Walker said. "But we knew what we had and figured we would be a tough matchup for them."
The length of the match didn't give West much time to rest before the finals.
"We had about an hour between matches," Walker said. "We were able to go grab a sandwich and then get back to the site."
The Wolves didn't appear sluggish in the finals though as they took a 4-3 lead in doubles with the wins from Collins-senior Jason Jung (No. 2 boys), sophomore Anshul Pandey-freshman Titus Strom (No. 3 boys), freshmen Brittany Bennett-Tori Simmons (No. 3 girls) and seniors Adam Mlynarczyk-Maddy Thompson (mixed). Seeing those names in the win column was a theme of the weekend as Pandey-Strom, Bennett-Simmons and Mlynarczyk-Thompson all went 4-0 in doubles.
Getting to 4-0 was no easy feat for the mixed team though.
West won the first set, 6-4, and dropped the second, 6-3, before taking a commanding 4-1 lead in the third. The Wolves had an overhead for 5-1, but missed it and soon a tiebreak was necessary. The breaker would go the way of the Wolves, 8-6.
"That was a huge match," Walker said. "Obviously you feel good being up, 4-3, whereas if we are down 4-3, then we're in trouble.
West still found itself in trouble with deficits of 7-4 and 9-6.
"I think I was the only one who wasn't nervous," Walker said.
The Wolves pulled within 9-8 on the strength of straight-set singles wins by senior Sean Slater (No. 2 boys), Pandey (No. 5 boys), Strom (No. 6 boys) and sophomore Rubina Sarwal (No. 6 girls). Those victories capped a 6-0 slate for Pandey, Strom and Sarwal. The only West player with a better record was Simmons (No. 5 girls), who went 7-0 at regionals with the final triumph (6-4, 7-6) pulling the match even, 9-9.
"At that point everyone sprinted over to the last court," Walker said.
That last court was occupied by Collins, who had already won the first set, 7-6, and held a 5-2 lead in the second.
"Race took all the drama out of it," Walker said. "He dropped the hammer, finished up and the kids mobbed him."
Collins won the next game to capture the set, match, dual match and a trip to College Station.
"Winning 10-0 is always nice," Walker said, "but being in a 9-9 match and seeing both sides scratching for that 10th point. That's what you play for; that's what team tennis is all about."
West saw its share of 10-0 matches in Tyler, defeating Round Rock McNeil and Longview by that margin in the first two rounds Friday. The only impediment the team ran into came via rain delays.
West's first match was pushed back five hours.
"We hopped back on the bus and threw Top Gun in," Walker said before wryly adding, "That'll get you fired up."
Goose and Maverick won't be needed for motivation during the team's next stop as West travels to the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center on the campus of Texas A&M for the Class 5A State Tournament.
"We've won district and now we've won regionals," Walker said. "But these are just steps on the way to our ultimate goal."
The Wolves have reached that ultimate goal four times. However, West hasn't won a match at state since the last of its three straight titles in 2006, losing semifinals in 2008, 2010 and 2011.
"You could use that for motivation," Walker said, "but you can't expect the kids who weren't there to understand what those losses felt like for the kids that were there."
The loss in 2010 came against Houston Memorial, which is West's semifinals opponent at 1 p.m. Friday. Memorial (17-0) has been to the state finals the past two seasons and been ranked No. 1 for much of 2012 after losing only one player from last year. The Wolves (23-2) have been No. 2 for the bulk of the season.
If West gets past Memorial, it would likely play New Braunfels in the finals at 1 p.m. Saturday. The Unicorns, who are playing El Paso Coronado in Friday's other semifinal, beat the Wolves in College Station last season and have won five straight state titles.
Despite those odds, the Wolves remain confident.
"I always feel like we can win at state," Walker said. "We've won state titles before and you almost always need a little luck or something to go your way. I think that will be the case again this year, but you can't just wait for that opportunity, you have to go out and make things happen."
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