South Warren’s Meghan Martin and Hannah Evans take home doubles’ tennis crown
By Perry Swack
Chalk held at the 2021 4th Region Tennis Tournament at Greenwood High School. The top four seeds in both the singles and doubles events advanced to the semifinals to qualify for the state tournament. The singles’ finale was contested between the top two seeds – both from Greenwood – as eighth-grader Arden Dethridge defeated sophomore Greer Glosick, 6-0, 6-2. On the doubles’ side, the top seed Meghan Martin and Hannah Evans – both South Warren juniors – knocked out 2-seed and Greenwood sophomores – Maria Crowe and Kate Young, 6-2, 6-2. The Lady Gators won their fourth-straight region title as both of their singles and doubles’ teams qualified for the state tournament.
Dethridge lost only one game in her first two matches, qualifying for the state tournament and setting up a semifinal matchup with 3-seed Taryn Deckard of Metcalfe County. Deckard gave Dethridge her closest match but fell to the eventual champion, 6-1, 6-2. The #2 seed, Glosick, also cruised to the semifinals, losing only one game in her first two matches to set up a semifinal match with Bowling Green’s Campbell Richey. Glosick advanced to the final by beating Richey, 6-1, 6-2, as both qualified for the state tournament.
In the doubles’ bracket, South’s Martin and Evans swept through their opening two matches in straight sets to set up a semifinal match with Greenwood’s Ashley Parks and Avery Overmohle. Martin and Evans ousted Parks and Overmohle, 6-1, 6-0, as both qualified for the state tournament. Greenwood’s duo of Young and Crowe qualified for the state tournament, setting up a semifinal showdown with Bowling Green’s Macy Meisel and Elizabeth Maglinger. The match went to a decisive thirteenth set as the two teams split the first twelve, 6-6. Young and Crowe won the tiebreaker 7-1 to take the first set, and they followed it up with a 6-2 win in the second set to win the match and qualify for the final. Martin and Evans’ victory in the doubles event was the Lady Spartans’ fifth-consecutive win in the girls’ doubles region event.
In reflecting upon the Lady Gators’ fourth-straight region team title, coach Tim Dethridge was really impressed with their performance. “To win a region team title by six points, have your singles players play each other for the singles title, and advance all your singles and doubles players to the state tournament is not easy for a group to do,” Dethridge said. “The girls had a business-like mentality that they advanced with. Each of them took care of their courts and got the job done for their teammates.”
The state tournament begins Tuesday, June 1 in Lexington. Dethridge faces Lindsay Jones from Corbin at 9:00 AM EST, while Glosick starts at 8:00 AM against McCracken County’s Shelby Puryear. Metcalfe’s Deckard will take on Sayre’s Greer Webb at 8:00 AM and BG’s Richey will face off with Knott County Central’s Kenna Fitzpatrick.
On the doubles’ side, Evans and Martin are seeded ninth and will play McKenna Caudill and Hannah Johnson of Shelby Valley at 11:00 AM, while Crowe and Young of Greenwood take on McKenna Barfield and Anna White of Russell at 10:30 AM. Teammates Overmohle and Parks will face off with Muhlenberg County’s Sarah Cate Boggess and Baker Hardison at 12:00 PM, and Meisel and Magligner of BG take on Paducah Tilghman’s Meghan Gruber and Anna West at 10:00 AM.
