Albemarle’s girls tennis team faced a gauntlet on the way to a Region 5D title this week.
First up, in the semifinals, was an unbeaten Riverside squad. The Patriots rolled 5-1.
Then Thursday in the region title match, Albemarle faced an unbeaten Riverbend squad. Not a problem either. Rinse and repeat, the Patriots rolled 5-1 again and captured a region championship while positioning themselves well in the notoriously challenging Class 5 state tournament.
Thursday the Patriots got wins from Emma Patrick at No. 2, Caroline Funk at No. 3, Amy Wang at No. 4 and Macy Moody at No. 5 before Catherine Swansiger clinched the match at No. 5 with a hard fought 7-5, 7-5 win. Patrick won 6-3, 6-3, Funk won 6-4, 6-1 and Wang rolled 6-0, 6-0. Moody won 6-2, 6-1.
Albemarle’s number one, Tess Eluvathingal Muttikkal, fell 6-0, 6-0 to highly regarded Riverbend sophomore Kendal Chang, the Fredericksburg’s area player of the year as a freshman last season.
The Patriots will host a Class 5 state quarterfinal match on June 3 at 11 a.m. after the conclusion of the Region 5D singles and doubles tournament next week.
