Lafayette and Oxford win individual state tennis titles
Published 2:07 pm Friday, April 30, 2021
After winning their second state championship in program history last week, Lafayette’s tennis team picked up some more hardware this week.
The MHSAA individual state tennis tournaments were held in Oxford at the John Leslie Tennis Complex, with both Oxford and the Commodores winning state titles on Thursday.
Lafayette’s Lucy Wilson and Jenna Lampton defeated the team from Long Beach, 6-3, 6-4, to win the Class 5A girls doubles state championship.
The Commodores entered the day with a chance to bring home a lot of gold, with five players and teams reaching the semifinals. They finished with two runners-up and two more semifinalist finishes along with the girls doubles title.
In a rematch from the Class 5A team state championship at Parham Bridges Tennis Center in Jackson on April 22, Lafayette’s Nate Leary faced Brookhaven’s Sam Allen in the boys singles final. Leary won the singles point last week, but Allen evened things by winning the boys singles title in straight sets.
The mixed doubles 5A final was another rematch between Lafayette and Brookhaven. Brookhaven won in straight sets, defeating the team of Hayden Williams and Presleigh Loper in straight sets.
“I can’t be (upset). Proud of my doubles team for winning,” said Lafayette head coach Debbie Swindoll. “A seventh-grader and a senior coming through, I couldn’t ask for a better day. … Sets the stage (for next season) with the experience we have coming back.”
In the Class 6A tournaments, Oxford brought home a state title in the boys doubles as both Charger teams faced each other in the finals. The team of Downing Koestler and Sharp Grantham defeated teammates Carter Young and Brown Turner, 6-4, 6-4, to win the 6A boys doubles title.
Oxford also finished runner up in the 6A girls doubles tournament. The team of Bel Monteith and Mary Margaret Shipman fell to the Ocean Springs team in the girls doubles final. Monteith and Shipman were up 5-2 in both the second and third sets but were unable to hold off late rallies by the Grayhounds duo.