Photo by Erin Nelson.
Oak Mountain’s Grace Qian returns the ball as she competes in a singles match against Florence during the Class 7A state tennis tournament held at the Lagoon Park Tennis Center in Montgomery on Monday, April 19, 2021. Photo by Erin Nelson.
Grace Qian had to regroup in a hurry if she wanted to accomplish her goal.
After suffering a loss in the doubles semifinals, the Oak Mountain High School sophomore was on court in the No. 1 singles final, facing a 4-1 deficit in the state championship match at Lagoon Park in Montgomery on April 20.
“I had a rough start, but then Coach [Kayla] Coley came up to me and gave me a little pep talk,” Qian said. “I calmed down for a little bit and decided to slow it down and turn it into a physical competition.”
Qian’s change in strategy worked, as she went on to win 11 of the final 12 games to knock off Vestavia Hills’ Cindy Jiang 6-4, 6-1, capturing a state title as an individual. It was the achievement she has had her eye on from the start.
“It’s a big deal to me, because going into high school, my whole goal was to win state,” she said.
For a time, it looked as if she would have a chance to double her fortune, as she and doubles partner Lacee Sheaffer advanced to the second day of the state tournament in the No. 1 doubles bracket. Qian and Sheaffer dropped the first set and dominated the second set but fell shy in a third-set tiebreaker in the semifinals.
Qian finished with an unblemished singles record on the year, with the semifinals loss just the second for her and Sheaffer all season.
“That was so fun,” Qian said. “I love playing with her.”
The other local schools pulled off impressive state tournament runs as well. The Spain Park boys team won the Class 7A state championship, pulling off the feat for the second time in program history. The Jags scored 43 points, edging Hoover and Huntsville, which tied for second with 34 points.
Jake Wilson won an individual title at No. 1 singles and John Kendrick won it all at No. 5 singles. The No. 2 doubles duo of Wilson and Walker Jackson won it all, while Brenton Cate and Sam Wasko claimed the crown at No. 3 doubles, giving Spain Park four of the nine championships. Jackson reached the final at No. 6 singles as well.
Briarwood’s boys finished fourth in the Class 6A tournament, accumulating 38 points and finishing behind Montgomery Academy, Mountain Brook and Trinity Presbyterian.
Luke Wolf capped off an illustrious high school career by winning the No. 1 singles title 6-2, 6-1, over Chelsea’s Jordan Garrett. It was the fifth state title for Wolf, who won No. 1 doubles in 2017 and 2019, No. 2 doubles in 2018 and No. 1 singles in 2019.
Andy Wan was a finalist for the Lions at No. 6 singles, while the No. 3 doubles pair of Vance Hopkins and Wan advanced to the final as well.
Chelsea’s boys made it to the state tournament as well, coming home sixth in 6A. The Hornets put together a strong season and postseason, accumulating 30 points at the state tournament. Jordan Garrett made it to the final in No. 1 singles to lead the way.
Kathryn Moore and Samantha Kennedy from Chelsea also made it to the state tournament as a No. 1 doubles duo and they reached the semifinals.
