The varsity tennis team had an impressive 16-3 record going in to the district tournament. As a No. 2 seed, the Raiders played Vista Ridge at home, Oct. 1, beating them handily 10-1.
“It felt really good to beat Vista Ridge because it basically meant that we had a spot to go to area,” Spencer said.
The win pitted them against Cedar Park in the semifinals in another home match, Oct. 4.
“Our doubles did alright,” senior Tyler Nardecchia said. “We came out losing 3-4 after doubles, but in singles we did really good and we were able to win 10-7.”
Junior Adrian Montes played the last match for the boys which determined whether they would move on to the district championship.
“It was pretty nerve-racking knowing that if you lose, you might cause the loss for the team [and not] be able to go to the district championship, but it felt nice winning and having the motivation of the team support me,” Montes said.
The team traveled to No.1 seed Vandegrift’s courts Oct. 8 for the district championship. They lost 10-1, finishing second in district. This is the highest finish the tennis has had in school history. The last two years, the team finished third in district.
“It was disappointing but I understand that Vandegrift is a very solid team,” junior Zane Ritter said. “They’ve always been a solid team in our district from top to bottom so I didn’t expect a whole lot, but I did want to win at least a couple matches.”
The top four teams from the district advanced to the area round to face the top four schools from the Austin district, Oct. 18-19.
“I’m excited that we were able to make it to area, [and] make it to the district [championship match] for the first time,” senior Cameron McCarthy said.
The top two teams will move on to the regional tournament.
“All the Austin teams in our area are not that great,” Ritter said. “Vandegrift is by far the best so we’re hoping to meet them in the finals.”
The team plays Crockett Friday at 9 a.m. at home. If they win, they’ll play again at 1 p.m., probably at home. If the area tournament is rained out, the top finishers from each district will automatically receive the bid for regionals, Oct. 25-26.
