Warhawks capture SCISA Class AA state title

Colleton Prep won the doubles matchup with defending champion Carolina Academy Saturday afternoon in Sumter to give the Warhawks a 5-4 victory in the SCISA Class AA girls tennis state final.

With the team match deadlocked at 4-4, juniors Brittan Carter and Tabor Copeland wrapped up the championship for the Warhawks (15-4) in No. 2 doubles with a 6-1, 7-5 win over Carolina Academy's Taylor Osbourne and Haley Hancock. Sophomore star Sarah McDonald had teamed with junior Caitlin Crosby to take No. 1 doubles for Colleton Prep after the two teams had split singles.

It was the first loss since 2007 for Lake City's Carolina Academy, which had taken a 5-4 win over Colleton Prep in last year's state final.

Coach Trent Cannon, after winning his first state title in his eighth year as coach, said the key to the win was Copeland's mental toughness in finishing off a 4-6, 6-4, 10-8 win over Ali Courtney at No. 3 singles by winning two points in a third-set match tiebreaker after a 90-minute rain delay to even singles at 3-3.

"Tabor was ahead 8-6 when it poured down rain and she came back and won the two points to win," Cannon said. "I don't know if we could have won if we had been down 4-2 after singles."

Singles: Sarah McDonald (CP) def. Rebecca Weaver, 6-1, 6-3; Taylor Osbourne (CA) def. Brittan Carter, 6-2, 6-3; Tabor Copeland (CP) def. Ali Courtney, 4-6, 6-4, 10-8; Tori Osbourne (CA) def. Caitlin Crosby, 6-4, 6-0; Brittany Griffin (CP) def. Haley Hancock, 6-3, 6-1; Haven Brown (CA) def. Taylor Hoff, 5-7, 6-1, 10-4.

Doubles: McDonald/Crosby (CP) def. Weaver/Tori Osbourne, 6-1, 6-2; Carter/Copeland (CP) def. Taylor Osbourne/Hancock, 6-1, 7-5; Courtney/Brown (CA) def. Griffin/Megan Mitchell, 6-1, 6-0.