HIDDEN VALLEY LAKE — In what could be a first for the Middletown High School tennis program, the Mustangs edged the Kelseyville Knights 3-2 on Tuesday to clinch the outright Coastal Mountain Conference championship at Hidden Valley Lake.
Middletown (8-0) had already clinched a tie for the league title entering play, but the Mustangs made sure there would be no co-championship by handing the Knights (5-2) their second conference loss of the season, both by 3-2 scores.
“It”s been a long time since we”ve won a tennis championship,” Middletown coach Mark Morita said. “The other day I was looking up in the rafters at the Tallman gym looking for another tennis pennant and I couldn”t find one, so this may be our first.”
The swing match on Tuesday came in first doubles where Andrew Rotter and Chris Whiting beat David Van Buskirk and Evan Carpenter 6-3, 7-6 (7-5). The match appeared as though it might go three sets but Rotter and Whiting rallied from a 4-0 deficit to win the second set and sweep the match.
“They got down 4-0 but they just came back and actually went up 5-4 before it went to the tie-breaker,” Morita said. “First doubles always is a toss-up because everyone seems to have good players there.”
Middletown”s other wins came in first singles, where Will Phelps beat Keith Hulsey 6-4, 6-1, and in third singles, where Tyler Madsen beat Nancy Tannous 6-2, 6-3.
“He just seems to get everything back,” Morita said of Phelps. “He”s very good at defusing his opponent”s power.”
Kelseyville wins came in second singles, where Stuart Davy made quick work of Aaron Turner, 6-0, 6-0, and in second doubles, where Jill Bailey and Lauren Nixon swept Zoe Everett and Jeanine Zolczynski, 6-2, 6-0.
Morita, a first-year coach, said the team”s championship would have not been possible without the hard work of his assistant coach, Vic Wroobel, or past head coach Tony Hart, who stepped down following the 2006 season.
“Tony laid the groundwork for this,” Morita said. “We couldn”t have done it without Vic”s and Tony”s contributions.”
