After competing in the district competition in early April, many players of the Raider Varsity Tennis Team either made semifinals or will be advancing to the Regional Tennis Tournament in a couple of weeks. According to Coach Norman, 8 out of their 10 entries made the semifinals, and 4 of their entries will advance to the Regional Tennis Tournament in few weeks.

According to senior Allison Jenkins who placed second in mixed doubles with her partner, the main challenges they faced during the competition was battling against the 40 mph wind. However, Jenkins said that practicing in varied weather “prepared (them) to play in the wind compared to other teams who were playing,” but even with experience, the results were not what Jenkins expected as she hoped to win first place. Despite this, Jenkins said that winning second place “allowed (them) to advance to regions, and even allowed (them) to advance to state, which has always been my ultimate goal.”

“Moving forward, I will continue to practice, looking forward to the state tournament,” Jenkins said. “I still am not satisfied with 2nd, so we will work harder until we have another opportunity to compete. After high school, I will attend Harding University and will play tennis there. I am so thankful to have played on such a wonderful team here at Randall High School, and am excited to carry my tennis career on into college.”

Results:

Girls’ Singles:                                                                               Boys’ Singles:

Abby Robertson- 1st Place (District Champion)                  Chase Blucher- 3rd Place

Leslie Omeire- 3rd Place                                                           Justin Le- 4th Place

Girls’ Doubles:

Brooklyn Hall/Brecklyn McMinn- 2nd Place (District Runner Up)

Ashley McEvers/Lanie Kuykendall- 3rd Place

Boys’ Doubles:

Drew Norman/ David Stephens- 2nd Place (District Runner Up)

Mixed Doubles:

Allison Jenkins/Miles Crain- 2nd Place (District Runner Up)