The boys and girls tennis teams needed wins over Benedictine and St. Vincent to hold on to a shot at State Playoffs.
They both got wins in convincing manner. They now both remain undefeated in the Region with one more match against a strong South Effingham group.
The girls made the three points necessary against St. Vincent via senior singles Caroline Benjamin, junior two singles Fiona Baer and number one doubles team of Annastasshia Ames and Emily Stephens. Laura Trivitayakhun struggled at three singles before bowing out in a hard-fought match. A fourth point was picked up by number two doubles team of Kate Macedo and Ali Mazur. The duo easily provided the most exciting match of the day. Macedo's defensive effort was the year’s best. By running down shot after shot, she enabled Mazur some easy sitters at net. The girls team is now 10-4 for the year and 4-0 in the Region.
Michael Zhu returned after missing two matches due to injury. He showed no signs of rustiness as he crushed a strong Benedictine number one singles player. Jason Trankle chipped in a second point as he continued his winning ways at two singles. Huy Phan maintained his undefeated number three singles spot with a quick two-set win.
Doubles teams of Kyle Guither and Nick Balas at one doubles and Lee and Chris Noonburg at two doubles allowed little room for doubt of their superior play. Both teams used unreturnable serves and net domination to give the Wildcats a 5-0 win.
The boys’ team is now 10-4 for the year and 4-0 in the Region.
The RHHS athletes are optimistic about a strong finish against Jenkins, Bryan County, Southeast Bulloch and Region power, South Effingham. Regional Playoffs are scheduled for mid-April and the State Playoffs run through May.