Local and area players prepare for state tennis tournament
By NICK McQUEEN
Four area tennis players will try their hand at the state level starting Friday.
For one Hays High School player, the weekend marks a second and last chance to climb the state ladder. Senior A.J. Carl will make his second trip to the Class 5A State Championships at the Wulz Riverside Tennis Center in WIchita. Action around the state begins at 12:30 p.m. Friday.
Carl qualified for the second season in a row for the 5A meet, taking fourth place at last week's Salina Central regional. Carl went in the fourth seed and stayed true to the ranking, falling to Salina Central junior Connor Brass in the consolation finals.
Carl (28-7) was one of two qualifiers last season out of the same regional for the Indians. He defeated teammate Brett Jensen in the consolation match.
Both went on to lose twice on the first day at the state meet.
The Indians' 5A regional is taking the most wins to the state meet as Carl, in fourth place, brings 28 wins.
The No. 1 ranked player in the form of senior Jan Labas from Salina South is 30-0, while Spencer and Connor Brass have a combined record of 55-15. Both Mustangs were state qualifiers last season, going No. 1 and 2 in the regional.
Carl has been the Indians' most consistent player all season. He went 4-0 at the Western Athletic Conference Championships two weeks ago.
Among his list of accomplishments this season is being named the 2008 WAC Player of the Year.
Class 4A
Junior Jeremy Harter is heading to state for the Colby Eagles. Harter, a first-time qualifier.
He placed fourth at last week's Class 4A sub-state in Pratt. He enters the state finale with a 14-9 mark. Ryan Schmidt of Buhler and Brandon Starkey of Wellington took first and second in the Pratt sub-state.
The 4A state meet is at the Harmon Park Tennis Center in Prairie Village.
Class 3-2-1A
After qualifying as a freshman for the 3-2-1A meet, WaKeeney-Trego sophomore Brandon Katt is back as a sophomore. The Golden Eagles' No. 1 player is 24-5 this season and took third in the Cimarron regional last week. Last season, Katt finished 14-15. He is one of a pair of Golden Eagles who qualified for the finale.
Junior Josh Schlegel earned his first state qualification, taking fourth behind Katt at the regional.
Schlegel is 19-6 entering the weekend at the Wichita State University Tennis Center in Wichita.
