Wando added another jewel to its crown Saturday by winning a record-tying sixth straight Class AAAA girls tennis state championship with a 4-2 victory over Mauldin at Sumter.

Meanwhile, Academic Magnet fell, 6-1, to Christ Church in the Raptors' bid to win their first title.

Although the Warriors (24-0) are in a class all alone as evidenced by their state-record 99th consecutive victory, Mauldin (17-3) may be gaining ground on them. The Mavericks doubled the combined point total of their three previous state final encounters with Wando.

"I never dreamed we could win six state titles in a row. Corin (Hallman) was the only player coming back this year," veteran coach Becky Williamson said.

"This has been a great team to work with, really fun ... no drama, except today."

After defeating Mauldin, 5-1, in last year's final, the Warriors' streak appeared to be in jeopardy for another year as four seniors departed. But when Columbia transplants Clair Larkin and Alexis Prickett joined returning senior Hallman, along with young newcomers Catherine Martin and Melanie Allen, the stage was set for Wando to continue its mastery.

This match still worried Williamson, who could sense how badly Mauldin wanted to avoid a fourth state final loss to the Warriors in five years, two of them shutouts.

Mauldin showed up ready to play, especially freshman star Ansley Speaks, who for the second straight year won the No. 1 singles match in straight sets. This time, it was a 6-2, 6-4 win over Hallman. "Speaks is really tough," Williamson said.

But juniors Larkin and Prickett, and seventh-grader Allen all scored comfortable wins at Nos. 2, 3 and 5, respectively, as Wando jumped out to an early 3-0 edge over the Mavericks.

When Martin fell at No. 4, however, to tighten Wando's lead to 3-2, the distinct possibility existed of needing to play No. 1 doubles to decide this state championship. The Warriors' No. 2 doubles team of junior Kayla Heller and sophomore Courtney Lopresti responded to the challenge of clinching the state title without having to call on the No. 1 doubles team by rallying from a quick 0-3 deficit in a third-set match tiebreaker to prevail, 2-6, 6-2, 10-7, over Maulden sophomore Morgan Tracy and freshman Hayley Behal.

SINGLES: Ansley Speaks (M) def. Corin Hallman, 6-2, 6-4; Clair Larkin (W) def. Haley Elliott, 6-3, 6-4; Alexis Prickett (W) def. Lexi Stewart, 6-2, 6-1; Molly Walsh (M) def. Catherine Martin, 6-3, 6-4; Melanie Allen (W) def. Meredith Wessinger, 6-2, 6-2.

DOUBLES: Kayla Heller/Courtney Lopresti (W) def. Morgan Tracy/Hayley Behal, 2-6, 6-2, 10-7.

Christ Church 6, Academic Magnet 1

Christ Church (17-1) yielded only 10 games in singles and rolled to its third straight Class A championship.

Academic Magnet (12-6) was unable to win more than three games in any singles match. The Raptors' only success came in the No. 1 doubles match in which Kelly Engle and Sarah Helms prevailed, 8-6, in a pro-set over the Cavaliers' Ellison Johnstone and Christian Hicks.

Engle, a senior, closed out her singles career for the Raptors in a 6-1, 6-2 loss to Elizabeth Hughes. No. 2 Helms, a junior, managed only one game in her loss to Olivia Lucas.

First-year Academic Magnet coach Brooke Floyd was surprised at the level of Christ Church's play. "They were really good ... a great team," she said.

The Cavaliers from Greenville are perennial powers in state high school tennis. This year, they own victories over Class AAAA state runner-up Mauldin as well as AAAA power Irmo. The victory over Academic Magnet gave Christ Church its fourth title in five years.

Nevertheless, Floyd was proud of her team that included three juniors in the singles lineup. "All of our girls were really excited to get to the state final. The girls feel really good about our season," she said.

SINGLES: Elizabeth Hughes (CC) def. Kelly Engle, 6-1, 6-2; Olivia Lucas (CC) def. Sarah Helms, 6-1, 6-0; Alley Walls (CC) def. Celia Spell, 6-2, 6-0; Rebecca Jennings (CC) def. Paige Gainey, 6-0, 6-3; Emily Jennings (CC) def. Ellie Hart, 6-1, 6-0.

DOUBLES: Engle/Helms (AM) def. Ellison Johnstone/Christian Hicks, 8-6; Emory Cannon/Mary Caulder (CC) def. Sarah Wieland/Kaitlyn Griener, 6-2, 6-2.

Reach James Beck at jamesbecktennis@gmail.com.

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