Prep Tennis: Hornets sweep regional titles; West freshman is runner-up
Published 1:05 am Sunday, October 25, 2015
Staff report
Salisbury sophomore Maria Capito won the 2A Midwest Regional singles championship, while Salisbury seniors Kayla Honeycutt and Kathryn Rusher teamed to win the regional doubles title.
Salisbury was the host for the two-day regional on Friday and Saturday.
Capito won the singles final by 6-2,6-3 against SHS teammate and fellow sophomore Julia Honeycutt.
Kayla Honeycutt/Rusher won 6-1, 6-0 against Lexington’s Maggie Lancaster/Emerson Hayes in the final.
Capito, the Honeycutt sisters and Rusher advanced to play in the 2A State Championships that will be held at Cary Tennis Park on Oct. 30-31.
In the singles semifinals, Capito topped Wilkes Central’s Jessika Barber 6-4, 6-3, while Julia Honeycutt rallied to beat CATA’s Kaley Williford 4-6, 6-2, 6-1.
Kayla Honeycutt/Rusher won 6-0, 6-0 against Surry Central’s team of Sommer Chilton/Mallory Wilmoth in the semifinals.
Capito and Julia Honeycutt won two singles matches each on Friday, while Kayla Honeycutt/Rusher won twice in doubles.
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In the 3A Midwest Regional at Concord’s Myers Park, West Rowan freshman Payton Holt qualified for the state tournament with a runner-up finish in singles.
Holt lost to Cox Mill’s Sara Jiang in the final.
Holt won 6-0, 6-0 against North Iredell’s Holly Griffin and 6-0, 6-1 against Ledford’s Crystal Crotts on Friday.
In Saturday’s semifinals, Holt won 6-2, 6-1 win against Weddington’s Emily Figman.
The 3A State Championships will be held at the Burlington Tennis Center on Oct. 30-31.
Carson’s Emily Sloop won 6-4, 6-3 in the first round against Southern Guilford’s Zafiara Harris but lost to Marvin Ridge’s Rachel Zubrinsky in the quarterfinals.
Carson’s doubles team of Gabi Jolly/Sierra Fesperman won 6-2, 2-6. 6-0 against an Asheboro team in the first round, but the Carson duo lost 6-2, 6-2 to a Concord’s Andrea Brink/Ashley Robinson in the quarterfinals.
East Rowan’s Angel Scialdone and Katie Barnes were regional qualifiers but lost first-round matches.
Also qualifying for the regional but losing first-round matches were the Carson doubles team of Margeret Correll/Maddy Pepper and the East Rowan doubles team of Lauren Weisensel/Shannon Mahaffey.