HS state tennis championships

By Todd Holcomb

For the AJC

Walton broke the state record for the longest winning streak in Georgia high school sports Saturday on a day when history was made on several fronts at the Clayton County Tennis Center.

Marist’s girls became the first program to win 20 state championships in tennis, while Starr’s Mill and newly opened Johns Creek ended a decade of private-school domination in boys tennis below the highest classification.

Woodward Academy won its third girls state title in three seasons in AAA.

Walton, claiming its seventh consecutive state title, defeated Centennial 3-2 in the AAAAA girls final. Walton’s winning streak in matches reached 133, one more than Taylor County’s girls basketball team won from 1968-72.

‘’It’s recognition,’’ Walton coach Roberta Manheim said of the record. “To go seven years and not to lose a match is special, but now we hold a record for those victories. It’s tangible evidence of what we’ve accomplished.’’

Centennial, which had lost 3-2 and 3-0 to Walton in previous matches, tied the final 2-2 when Centennial’s Allison Falkin, who has signed with Illinois, defeated junior Emily Zabor 6-3, 6-1 in a match between girls ranked in the top 50 nationally of their class.

Walton juniors Claire Marshall and Amelia McIsaac won 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 at No. 1 doubles to clinch it.

“I don’t know No. 1 singles had lost,’’ said Marshall, explaining her calm in the deciding match. “We had the mind-set that we had to be the ones to pull it off if we won.’’

In AAAA, Marist’s girls beat Bainbridge 3-0, and Shannon Murdy, a junior who has committed to Indiana, completed an undefeated season with a 6-0, 6-0 victory at No. 1 singles. Like Walton, Marist had no seniors on its roster.

The AAAA boys final was played between Fayette County rivals, and Starr’s Mill beat McIntosh 3-1. It was the first boys state title for Starr’s Mill, which came dangerously close to being defaulted during the morning semifinals when it arrived four minutes before the deadline.

In the final, Adam Springstroh and Ian Lennox won the clinching match at No. 1 doubles with a 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Femi Brinson and Stewart Weisheit.

Until this year, private schools had won 45 consecutive state championships in boys tennis below the highest classification since 1999.

“It’s phenomenal because most of the private schools dominate these sports,’’ said Starr’s Mill coach Ron Mann. “It’s good for a public school to prove we can hang with them.’’

Officially, it was Johns Creek in the AAA final to break through for the public schools. Johns Creek also became the first team to win a state title in its first year of existence.

The North Fulton school started three freshmen -- Akshay Verma, Phillippe Farach and Pranav Bhardwaj -- in the singles lineup and beat Riverwood 3-0 in the final.

In the AAA girls final, Woodward Academy beat Riverwood 3-0. Juniors Jordana Klein and Katie Paradies dropped three games between them at Nos. 2-3 singles.