The Brownfield tennis team faced off against the Andrews Mustangs on Tuesday, in one of the Region I-4A Regional Quarterfinals. The Cubs came out on top and earned a trip to Abilene to take on Canyon Randall in the Region I-4A Semifinals on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023, at 9:00 a.m.
Both teams were looking to get off to a quick start in doubles and the matches did not disappoint. Brownfield was able to get wins from Ethan McPherson and John Fields (6-2, 6-2) and Kaden Connett and Jacob Arguellez (6-4, 6-2) on the boys’ doubles side. On the girls’ doubles side of things, Brownfield Lady Cubs Jayla Bazan and Emalee Martinez pulled out a victory (6-1, 1-6, 10-4) along with a win from Madilynn Brisendine and Rylee Richolson (7-5, 6-2). Brownfield was able to come away with a 4-3 advantage over Andrews following the doubles round of play.
In singles, the matches would remain just as tight as the teams fought to get to that tenth win. The Cubs were able to come away with some quick wins from Damian Ussery (6-1, 6-2) and John Fields (6-0, 6-4) to give the Cubs a slight 6-5 lead. The next three wins to come off the courts for Brownfield would prove to be huge as each player was able to overcome a first-set loss. Ethan McPherson was able to fight off a 2-6 first set loss to complete a huge comeback win, taking the second set 6-3, and winning the tiebreaker 10-7. Senior, Emalee Martinez, continued her recent success as she overcame a 5-7 first-set loss, to come back and take the second set 6-3, and win the tiebreaker 10-4. Not only did Emalee win the tiebreaker, this was also her 100th career win as a varsity Lady Cubs tennis player!
With the Cubs now holding an 8-7 lead over the Mustangs, the match would come down to the last four matches on the court. Madison Bolton was the first off the court with a huge come-from-behind victory (3-6, 6-2, 10-3) to give Brownfield a 9-7 lead with three matches left to finish. With matches winding down, Senior, Jacob Arguellez, was able to secure the tenth win for Brownfield and wrap up the match with a 6-4, 6-4 victory. Raegen Franklin also finished up her match as Jacob was shaking hands with a 6-4, 6-3 victory.
Head Coach Rich Hammons said, “This was an incredibly exciting match played by two very tough teams. Andrews is always a well-coached team and very tough. We feel very fortunate to have walked away with a win in what proved to be a day of comebacks. I was so proud of the heart and the effort displayed by our players on the court. They never stopped working for every point, they were moving all match, and showed everyone just how bad they wanted this.”
Something to note: Brownfield and Franklin are the only two teams out of 16 teams left that are 3A. UIL only sanctions Team Tennis from 4A to 6A. Brownfield is one of many 3A schools that move up to play Team Tennis. Brownfield will plat at Rose Park Tennis Center, 810 Portland Ave. in Abilene, TX tomorrow morning Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023, at 9:00 a.m.
