There’s only about three weeks left in the roughly 10-week long tennis regular season and the goal for its top contenders remains the same: schedule the toughest opponents possible to prepare for the upcoming region and state tournaments.
This upcoming weekend (March 23-24), Westminster, the defending Class 3A boys and girls state champions, will get that opportunity with the 38th annual Buckhead Rotary Tournament.
In addition to the Wildcats, Athens Academy, Kennesaw Mountain, Lambert, Pace Academy, St. Pius, McCallie (TN) (boys only) and Girls Prep School Chattanooga (girls only) will be contending for the annual tournament’s title.
The amount of state titles accumulated by these 14 participating teams is incredibly impressive. The Westminster boys (21) and girls (19) lead the way with 40 combined state titles, but Athens Academy girls (11) and boys (12) boast a combined 23 themselves. The Lambert boys took last year’s Class AAAAAAA crown, the first state title in program history, and Pace Academy (8) and St. Pius (5) have also taken multiple state titles on the boys side. There is no doubt that this weekend’s results will provide a gauge heading into the closing weeks of the season.
Last weekend, five-time defending state champion Walton Lady Raiders went to Chattanooga, TN to defend their title at the annual DecoTurf High School Tennis Team Championships. This massive and national event is invitation only and hosts 24 boys teams and 24 girls teams that are tiered off into 8-team divisions. Walton did not travel its full roster and ended up placing sixth in the A division after losing to Sacred Heart (KY), but remains undefeated (10-0) on the season. North Gwinnett (the team Walton defeated in last year’s Class AAAAAAA state championship match) took first in the B Division and Carrollton reached the finals in the C division.
