By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Big roster, big results.
The Springfield Catholic girls’ tennis team notched its third straight district team title on Wednesday evening, beating Thomas Jefferson 5-1 in the Class 2 District 6 Tournament finals.
Catholic, with a 9-12 enrollment of 254 students, has 43 players on its girls’ tennis roster. Team chemistry is strong, and no one is turned away if they want to play.
“Coaches tell me every year, ‘You have a good program, but your kids are nice,’” said Catholic coach Aaron Tackett. “From 1 to 43, they’re always supporting each other and cheering each other on. I have parents say, ‘Should (my kid) do this or should they do tennis?
“Do tennis, because everyone has a great experience in tennis and that’s what it’s all about. Let’s go have fun.”
Winning is always fun, and Catholic’s record in duals (12-3) this season can be attributed to the team’s all-around competitiveness and bond, Tackett said.
“They fight,” Tackett said. “Every year they’ve been fighters, but this year especially. They go into everything with the mindset of, ‘We have to win.’
“We always have kids who get along, but they’re really leaning on each other right now. It’s everyone from freshmen to seniors. They just love each other and love playing tennis together, and the results are great.”
Taylor Taggart and doubles partner Maddie Jones are two of the three seniors in Catholic’s top six.
The duo helped Catholic sweep doubles play to start Wednesday’s dual of small-school tennis powers. Taggart’s victory in singles clinched the district title.
“The opportunity to do this our senior year, and also the opportunity to do it with all of our best friends, is really cool,” Jones said. “We were expecting it to be tough competition, and it really was. (Thomas Jefferson) really challenged us, so it made it so much better that we got to pull off the win.”
Catholic freshman Catie Cunningham, who moved to the area last summer, continued her stellar rookie campaign with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Esther Yang in the top singles match.
Cunningham now stands at 26-0 in singles. The freshman lefthander also took first place at the Springfield Invitational and Republic Invitational this season.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE MATCH
“She never gets too high, she never gets too low,” Tackett said. “Her mechanics are great and they’re only going to get better. There are things she can improve upon, but she works so hard. That’s the thing: she’s steady, she works hard and she gets to balls that a lot of people can’t touch.
“She’s building quite a resume. And she’s a great kid.”
Cunningham is from a family of athletes – her father (basketball) and mother (volleyball) played collegiately at Purdue – and she gravitated toward tennis during the COVID-era quarantine five years ago.
“My dad wanted me to get out of the house and actually play a sport,” Cunningham said. “I didn’t really like tennis for about three months.”
After several camps and private lessons in the sweltering Texas heat, Cunningham grew to love her new sport.
“Tennis is such an addicting sport,” Cunningham said. “Once you’re in the moment and playing, it’s like nothing else is happening. Everything stops. It’s truly an amazing feeling. And you create a lot of good friendships.”
Thomas Jefferson was seeking its sixth consecutive district championship as a program. The Cavaliers had also qualified for back-to-back final fours.
“Tennis is important at TJ,” said athletic director Chris Myers, who was filling in for tennis coach Tommy Brumfield (illness). “We have a tennis club one mile away from the school, so our kids spend a lot of time growing up playing there. We reap the benefits of that as they come into high school.
“With the (MSHSAA) championship factor, we’re a small school that got bumped up to Class 2 and we’re still able to play at a high level. We’re real proud of our girls for stepping up and doing this.”
Catholic will host Pembroke Hill in the team sectional round Monday. A victory would send Catholic to the team state championships for the first time in six years.
In individual districts last weekend, Catholic qualified five of its top six for the state tournament.
“For the seniors, it will be one of our last moments together. So, we want to go out there and make memories,” Taggart said.
Catholic 5, Thomas Jefferson 1
Doubles
- Cunningham/Lee (C) def. Yang/Maksoud, 8-6
- Jones/Taggart (C) def. Ro/Joseph, 8-3
- Neville/Starks (C) def. Lowery/Bowles, 9-8 (7-2)
Singles
- Cunningham (C) def. Yang, 6-2, 6-1
- Taggart (C) def. Joseph, 6-0, 6-1
- Lowery (TJ) def. Neville, 6-1, 6-1
