KHS tennis finishes up busy week
HIGH SCHOOL TENNIS
By MITCH LUCAS sports@kilgorenewsherald.com

GET IT, LINSEY! - Kilgore High School's Linsey Cardoso (above) and mixed doubles teammate Chance Grantham made it to the semifinals last week in the KHS junior varsity tournament played here.

The Kilgore High School varsity tennis team wrapped up a busy week for the school's tennis program when it finished the Tyler Lee tournament on Saturday.

Coach Jason Maroney had a junior varsity tournament at the high school and at Maude Laird Middle School last week, then had to coach his varsity team in Tyler.

Maroney's varsity Bulldogs are off this week, then play for the first time this spring on their own courts next weekend, hosting a tournament here that begins Friday. Other schools participating include Gilmer, Gladewater, Pine Tree, White Oak, Whitehouse, Spring Hill, Commerce, Hallsville, Quitman, and Trinity.

For the varsity in Tyler, Josh Way won two of his three boys singles matches. Josh beat Henderson's Conner Hollis, 6-4, 6-1; beat John Tyler's Jose Carmona, 6-0, 6-0, and lost to Super Champ Charlie Martell of Tyler Lee, 6-0, 6-0.

Jody Madding and Josh Bailey split their doubles matches, beating JT's Dews and Martinez, 6-1, 6-2, then losing to top-seeded Patrick and Vader of Lindale by the same score. Ethan High and Joe Worden lost to a Longview team of Hohlt and Bowels, beat a Sulphur Springs team of Swatsell and Smith, 8-5, then lost to Campbell and Berringer of Nacogdoches, 8-6.

Haley Smith won her two matches on Friday, beating Mount Pleasant's Janira Buitron, 6-0, 6-2, and Lufkin's Gabby Holiday, 6-0, 6-0. Smith, who was the No. 1 seed, couldn't come back on Saturday because she was playing in a Champs tournament in Dallas.

Emily Spence did well in girls singles. She defeated Kristine Ludlow of Tyler Lee, 6-0, 6-0, then lost to Longview High Super Champ Brittany Trich by that score.

In girls doubles, Emily Mitis and Brittany Conner beat a Lufkin team of Alvarado and Pokala, 7-5, 6-2, then lost to No. 2 seed Gray and Mathieu of Lee, 6-2, 6-4. Also in girls doubles for KHS, Lauren Terry and Meredith Gregg beat a Longview team, 6-2, 6-3, beat a Lee team, 4-6, 6-4, 10-4, then lost to JT's Duran and Llano, 6-3, 6-2.

In mixed doubles play for Kilgore, the duo of Callie Cunyus and Trevar Compton won their first three matches, beating teams from Jacksonville, Edgewood and All-Saints before losing their next two, a loss to a Nac team in the semifinals and then a loss to a Lee team in the match for third. Shelby Duncan and Eric Applegate won their firstround match over a Longview team, 6-2, 6- 1, and lost to a team from Lone Oak.

In the JV tournament last week, Corsicana did very well, winning first place. Lindale was second, All-Saints third, KHS fourth, then Spring Hill, Nac, Jacksonville, and Gladewater.

No KHS players placed, but Maroney said he was pleased with their efforts.

In mixed doubles, Chance Grantham and Linsey Cardoso had a first-round bye, beat a Corsicana team, 8-4, and lost to another Corsicana team, Adams and Glenn, in the semifinals, 8-5. Also in mixed doubles play, Daniel Modisette and Shivani Patel beat Ludorff and Hughs of Nac, 8-2, then lost to Corsicana's Browntree and Flores, 8-6.

Naomi Worden and Courtney Foxworth won two of their three matches for KHS. They beat a Nac team, 8-0, beat a team from Spring Hill, 9-7, and lost to Smith and Crowe of Corsicana, 8-5, in the semifinals.

Shawna Bass and Kaylea Clower lost to a team from All-Saints and to a team from Corsicana. Zonera Javed and Chelsie Sartor lost to a team from Lindale and to a team from Nac; and Lynsey Howell and Allison Guthrie beat the Jacksonville team of Carpenter and Tucker, 8-2, then lost to Corsicana's Smith and Crowe, 8-1.

In boys doubles, Kilgore's Jose Tapia and Brian Park beat a team from Gladewater before losing to a team from Nac, and Josh Stelly and Dylan Sanders lost to teams from Corsicana and Lindale.

Chelsey Cox was the No. 1 girls singles seed for KHS, beating Spring Hill's Avery Curtis, 8-1, but lost in the second round to eventual winner Sydney Booth of All-Saints, 8-4, in what Maroney said was the best match of the tournament.

Monte Broussard lost her first-round match, but won twice, beating Gladewater's Tonya Burr and Jacksonville's Jennifer Cardinas, before losing to Curtis in the consolation final.

Marina Linkinhoker lost to Booth in the first round, and to Curtis in round two.

Jeremy Berryhill beat Calvin Wagnes of Nac, 8-3, in the first round, then lost to Baxter Beasley of All-Saints, 8-5. Trent Raby beat Jacksonville's David Strandberg, 8-1, then to Corsicana's Neal Ewing, 8-4. Ewing won the boys singles competition.

Kilgore's JV tennis team plays in tournament action Thursday in Jacksonville.