Sports / High School / Tennis

12 - 5:36am

The Olton and Idalou tandems won their quarterfinal matches Monday but fell in the semifinals to finish with bronze medals.

AUSTIN — Olton and Idalou tennis doubles teams didn’t win it all at the state tournament. But the Mustangs’ Emilio Sandoval and Paulo Ribeiro and the Wildcats’ Ethan Arismendez and Heath Holt aren’t coming home empty handed. The Olton and Idalou tandems won their quarterfinal matches Monday but fell in the semifinals to finish with bronze medals. “I’m very proud of our kids,” Olton coach Nati Sandoval said. “Just making it to state was quite an accomplishment, something we had never done before. We had a good run, and we did our best. Unfortunately, it didn’t go our way.”

Several new faces from South Plains at state tennis tournament 04/30/12 - 5:24am

Paulo Ribeiro didn’t have a choice of which city he would spend a year in as a foreign exchange student. So it was quite a culture shock when the senior from Sao Paulo, Brazil — the country’s largest city with more than 11 million people — was placed in Olton, a town of roughly 2,000. What didn’t change, though, was a natural talent for tennis, a sport he had given up two years earlier. Ribeiro jumped back into the game when he found out Olton had a team, helping lead the Mustangs to the program’s first state tournament.

High school tennis roundup: Idalou tennis duo headed to state 04/20/12 - 5:37am

Region I-1A

ODESSA — Idalou’s Ethan Arismendez and Heath Holt took second place in the boys doubles draw at the Region I-2A tennis tournament Thursday at the Ratliff Tennis Complex, earning them a state tournament berth. The duo lost its semifinal against Wall’s top-seeded pair of Brice Conoly and Rhett Jones, falling 6-2, 6-4. But the Idalou team turned around and won its third-place match against Wall’s fourth-seeded pair of Jason Beach and Collin Weise, 6-1, 6-4.

Shallowater's Blackwell shows gutsy attitude in her final high school match 04/20/12 - 5:34am

Eight sets of tennis caught up to Claire Blackwell on Thursday. An old shoulder injury flared up during the Shallowater standout’s 6-4, 6-2 loss to Iowa Park’s Bethany Hale in a third-place match at the Region I-3A tournament at McLeod Tennis Center. Blackwell could have thrown in the towel before the match was over, but she endured the pain and displayed the work ethic that came to define her career at Shallowater. “Claire will get out there and fight to the end,” Shallowater tennis coach Kellye Sparkman said. “Even with that shoulder injury, she won’t quit.”

Lockney's Samann advances to I-1A semis 04/19/12 - 5:27am

Class 2A

LEVELLAND — Lockney’s Mary Samann advanced to the Region I-1A tennis semifinals Wednesday with a 7-5, 6-1, victory against Olton’s Mikala Whitaker at South Plains College. Samann will face Big Lake’s Katie Dorsey at 9 a.m. today for a spot in the regional championship and a state tournament berth. Samann beat Wink’s Josalyne Ray in the first round, 6-2, 6-1, and Whitaker beat Hartley’s Estor Van Dijk, 6-2, 6-3.

Shallowater's Blackwell falls in semifinals 04/19/12 - 5:28am

There was nothing for Claire Blackwell to do but tip her cap. The Shallowater senior lost her semifinal match in straight sets Wednesday at the Region I-3A tennis tournament, falling to Vernon’s second-seeded Miranda Townson, 6-1, 6-4, at McLeod Tennis Center. “She’s an incredible player,” Blackwell said. “Her serve and shot placement are ridiculous, so I just tried to get the ball in play.” Townson made short work of Blackwell in the first set, but Shallowater’s top girls singles player made the Vernon standout earn the victory.

Despite loss, Levine left his mark at Lubbock High 04/18/12 - 5:47am

Max Levine’s senior season may not have ended the way he wanted it to, but the Lubbock High tennis standout helped start something big for the Westerners. Levine, the second seed in the boys singles draw at the Region I-5A tournament, lost to El Paso Franklin’s third-seeded Ricardo James, 7-5, 6-3, in a third-place match Tuesday at McLeod Tennis Center. Despite the loss, Levine left a substantial mark on the Lubbock High tennis program.

Lubbock High's Levine seeks third place, playback at Region I-5A tennis tourney 04/17/12 - 5:39am

Max Levine is the South Plains’ only shot at a state tournament berth, and the Lubbock High senior is going to need some help to get there. The second-seeded Levine lost his Region I-5A semifinal tennis match against San Angelo Central’s Nick Melott, 6-2, 6-1, on Monday afternoon at McLeod Tennis Center. He’ll play for third place at 9 a.m. today and hopes to earn a playback, which is now the only way he can reach state. Levine had beaten Melott three times in a row this spring, all in three sets, making Monday’s defeat a tough one to swallow.

Shallowater tennis claims three titles 04/12/12 - 5:42am

The Shallowater tennis team won three titles at the District 2-3A tournament Tuesday at Frenship High School, and all three came against teammates. Claire Blackwell downed Shyanne Ortega, 6-0, 6-4, to claim the girls singles crown, and Kendal Shoulders and Cyrena Valles beat Marina Medellin and Allison Maldonado, 6-3, 6-3, in girls doubles. Marcus Armstrong and Tyler Eubanks defeated Nick Hines and Lane Tyson, 6-7, 6-4, 6-2, in boys doubles.

FISD tennis doubles team wins district title 04/08/12 - 5:43am

FISD doubles team wins district title

FISD doubles team wins district title AMARILLO — Frenship senior Davis Odorizzi and junior Brittany McClellan won the mixed doubles championship Friday in the District 3-4A tennis tournament. They advance to the Region I-4A tournament April 16-17 at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene. Odorizzi and McClellan won their first three matches in straight sets, then posted a 3-6, 6-2, 6-1 victory in the finals against Canyon’s Dylan Odell and Abigale Strickland.

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