In their second meeting of the season, the Hargrave Tigers were welcomed by the Carlisle (Martinsville, VA) Chiefs on the clay courts of Chatmoss Country Club. Cadets Daniel Kim, Haotian Liu, Rafael Tudela and Turner Wall posted solid wins on the singles side. When the dust settled on Cadet Reid Dantonio and Cadet Frankie Chang’s long grinding matches, the team score stood at 4-2 and it was up to the doubles side of the ledger to determine the team outcome.
At third doubles, Cadets Walt Kasica and Chase Cooper started strong to jump to a 4-2 lead. But Chiefs Pace and Ratliff were unwilling to go down without a fight, making adjustments to overcome the deficit, close out their match 8-4, and bring the team score to 4-3. Meanwhile at first doubles, Kim and Liu put together a demonstration of the teamwork, determination, and blindingly fast volleys and passing shots that epitomizes the men’s doubles game. On the next court, Tudela and Cadet Zack Bunner were involved with their own troubles in a seesaw contest until they cracked the code at 4-4 and went on to finish with a 8-4 outcome. Final team score, 6-3.
Our next match is on Saturday, April 27th at Blue Ridge, followed by a trips to Fishburne Military (Monday, 29 April) and Appomattox County High (Tuesday, 30 April). They will finish up regular season play with a home match against powerhouse Eastern Mennonite School (Harrisonburg, VA) on Thursday, May 2.
Individual Match Scores:
Singles
#1 – Reid Dantonio v Mitchell Hamlet : 6-10
#2 – Dan Kim v Colin Rachner : 10-2
#3 – Haotian Liu v Will Bennett : 10-6
#4 – Frankie Chang v Cody Mills : 7-10
#5 – Rafael Tudela v Dyer Pace : 10-4
#6 – Turner Wall v Jacky Bao : 10-0
Doubles
#1 – Kim and Liu v Hamlett and Rachner : 8-2
#2 – Tudela and Zachary Bunner v Bennett and Mills : 8-3
#3 – Walter Kasica and Chase Cooper v Pace and Michael Ratliff : 8-4
