Tiger tennis headed for state

The Demopolis High School boys tennis team includes Brent Largely, Will Webb, Carson Parten, Chance Martin, Garrett Miller, Kyle Woodruff and Logan Boone.
The Demopolis High School boys tennis team includes Brent Largely, Will Webb, Carson Parten, Chance Martin, Garrett Miller, Kyle Woodruff and Logan Boone.

The boys of the Demopolis High School tennis team will live to fight another day after extending their season during sectionals in Jasper Wednesday.

The boys tallied a total of 37 points, a mark good enough for second place and a spot in next week’s state tournament in Decatur.

The Tigers outpaced third place finisher Chilton County by 10 points, a considerable portion of which came from eighth-grader Carson Parten’s victory in the Four Seed draw.

“Carson Parten won a huge match for us,” Demopolis High tennis coach Clay Massey said. “He defeated a boy from Chilton County and by winning that match, that was a six-point swing.”

Parten’s 10-4 win over Chilton County came in the second round after he dropped McAdory 10-4 in the first round. He ultimately fell in the finals to Walker.

Logan Boone proved the big winner of the day, taking the tournament of top seeds and the right to enter the state draw as the No. 1 seed.

Boone drew a first round bye and then downed McAdory 10-1 in the second round before beating Walker 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the finals.

Kyle Woodruff earned a 10-5 victory over McAdory in the tournament of No. 2 seeds. Chance Martin beat McAdory 10-0 in the No. 3 seed tournament.

Garrett Miller advanced in the No. 5 seed draw by beating Bryant 10-7. The No. 6 seed tournament saw Will Webb beat Bryant 10-7.

In doubles action, Boone and Martin beat McAdory 10-3 in their lone victory in the No. 1 seed draw. Woodruff and Parten beat McAdory 10-1 in their one win in the No. 2 seed bracket.

The No. 3 seed draw saw Webb and Miller earn and first round bye and move on to beat Bryant 10-6 before bowing out to Walker in the finals.

“They played outstanding,” Massey said. “As a team, we won every match that we should have.”

As the Tigers prep for the state tournament, Boone and Miller are also preparing for their impending trip to Anaheim, Calif. for international DECA competition.

“These kids work hard,” Massey said. “We’ve got great kids who come to work every single day to perfect their craft. This group lost a lot of good players off last year’s team and they’ve taken on a tough task and gotten better every week that we’ve been here. And the fact that we are into the state tournament really speaks to their work ethic.”

The Tigers are scheduled to take part in state competition Monday and Tuesday in Decatur.