Prep Tennis: Sterrey leads seven All-State finishers
From Staff Reportssports@newnan.com
Joe Sterrey of The Heritage School successfully defended his Class AA singles title on Tuesday, leading seven All-State finishers at the GISA Individual Tennis Tournament at the John Drew Tennis Center in Macon.
Sterrey defeated Colby Gandy of Edmund Burke after Gandy got past the Heritage School junior’s teammate Hamza Khan in the state semifinals.
Sterrey dominated Monday’s opening two rounds with consecutive 6-0, 6-0 and 6-3, 6-0 wins to reach the semifinals. He defeated Jesse Drew of Covenant to reach the finals.
Joining Sterrey in the Class AA finals were the Lady Hawks’ No. 1 doubles team of Andrea Mayen and Abbie Farr. The duo fell to defending state champions Hannah Notaro and Hannah Jackson of Brookwood in the finals to finish the two-day tournament with a 3-1 record.
Defending Class AA girls singles champion, senior Isabel Dennis, struggled through a pulled muscle in her upper-left arm to reach the semifinals. But without a backhand, she dropped her first match of the season to Katie Sherer of Monsignor Donovan of Athens, having defeated Sherer earlier in the season.
Also earning All-State honors for the Hawks were doubles partners Grayson Parker and Alex Carter, who reached the semifinals before losing to eventual state champions Billy Grimsley and Adam Lowe of Southwest Georgia.
Carter and Parker battled in Monday’s second round to advance with a 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 victory to put them in Tuesday’s semifinals.
The Heritage School teams now turn respective attentions to the upcoming GISA Class AA Team Tournaments in Augusta, while attempting to repeat as state champions.
