Members of the Hays High tennis team include (front row, left to right) Hailey Williams, Grace Ortiz, Abby Knedlik, Claudia Norman, Alli Garcia, (back row, left to right) Devin Knedlik, Zack Curry, Ryan New, Haley Butler, Sabrina Smith, Antonio Sanchez, Dustin Zimmerman, Sean Farrell, Tyler Gray, Nick Sanchez, Coach Debbie Cook. Not in photo is team member Sarah Ortiz. (Courtesy photo) |
Staff Report.
The Hays High tennis team will be heading to the Area Tournament this week, hoping to break through the tough competition.
The Hays netters were fourth out of District 27-4A, one of the toughest districts in the state. The top four teams move to the Area Tournament, held in San Antonio Wednesday and Thursday.
Within Hays’ district are two state-ranked teams – Alamo Heights at No. 2 and No. 4 Boerne Champion.
The Rebels move to the Area Tournament seeded fourth after the District Tournament.
The drive to the area tournament began Oct. 11 when the Rebels handled the Samuel Clemens Buffaloes, dropping them by a score of 10-5, and placing Hays in the semi-finals against Alamo Heights.
“The Heights team is just plain tough. They are ranked #2 in the state in 4A. We played hard, but just couldn’t get the win,” Hays head tennis coach Debbie Cook said.
The Hays netters played Heights on Friday, coming away with a 10-0 loss.
On Saturday, the Rebels played Kerrville Tivy for the third place spot, but were beaten by the Antlers by a score of 10-5.
The Rebels had some players who were playing through injuries, Cook said. “I appreciate the efforts of all of our players – this is the character of our team. We have played Tivy two times this year and have had close matches with them. We just continue to struggle to get the win against them,” she said.
The draws for the Area Tournament have Hays taking on San Antonio Jefferson Wednesday at 3 p.m. at McFarlin Tennis Center in San Antonio. If the Rebels beat Jefferson, they will play Thursday morning against district foe Boerne Champion.
“We have a lot of tennis yet to play. I told my team, this is when the fun starts. They have worked hard all season long, take time to enjoy what we are doing,” Cook said.
