Oct 26

Oct 26 Parrott Academy fends off St. David's, earns NCISAA 3-A dual-team championship

The Patriots proudly display their title trophy after knocking off the Warriors, who beat APA in the previous two state finals. Rudy Coggins / Neuse News

ROCKY MOUNT — Victory is like fine wine: years in the making, moments in the tasting.

After a three-plus hour battle with an old nemesis, Arendell-Parrott Academy sampled that sweet, delectable nectar of triumph Saturday afternoon at N.C. Wesleyan College.

Cameron Jones earned the decisive point, propelling the Patriots past St. David's School, 5-4, and gave the program its first-ever NCISAA 3A dual-team girls' tennis crown and first since 2011.

"It feels amazing. I'm so happy," Jones said. "The past two years has been sad, but we had great seasons. This year, I'm glad we could pull through."

St. David's knocked off APA in the 2017 and 2018 state finals.

But not this time.

The top-seeded Patriots, who achieved a perfect campaign (15-0 overall), set the tone during doubles play.

The third-seeded tandem of all-state performer Allison Christiano and Mary Helen Hood dismantled the Warriors' Elizabeth Holderness and Anna George, 8-4. Teammates Cameron Jones and Erika Gorrin-Rivas, who each earned a nod to the all-state team, rallied from an early-match deficit and turned back Sydney Cook and Grace Haile 8-5.

"I felt like that Court [One win] was critical," APA head coach Brad Sauls said. "It was going to be very difficult to pull off four singles matches against St. David's, so winning two doubles [points] was so important. I felt like if you can beat people in doubles, they're a little mentally down in their singles.

"Their No. 1 and No. 2 players are great players. Winning that court let them down a little bit going into singles and that helped us. We got off to good starts in the singles."

Parrott built a 4-1 team advantage behind straight-set decisions from Hood and Brydge. The duo combined to lose just four games at No. 5 and 6 singles, respectively.

Third-seeded St. David's evened the match at 4-all with straight-set wins at No. 2 and 3. Fourth-seeded Elizabeth Holderness reeled off the final seven points in a third-set tiebreaker to defeat Anna Morris 3-6, 6-1, 1-0 (6).

All eyes turned to No. 1.

Parrott Academy sophomore Cameron Jones listens to head coach Brad Sauls, right, during a second-set changeover Saturday afternoon. Jones emerged victorious 7-5, 6-4 and completed the year with a 15-0 record in slngles and doubles. Rudy Coggins / Ne… — Parrott Academy sophomore Cameron Jones listens to head coach Brad Sauls, right, during a second-set changeover Saturday afternoon. Jones emerged victorious 7-5, 6-4 and completed the year with a 15-0 record in slngles and doubles. Rudy Coggins / NeuseNews

Jones labored to consistently make shots during the early stages of the opening set against Haile, who ripped winners down the line on occasion.

But the sophomore, who had yet to experience defeat this fall, displayed a calm demeanor that impressed even Sauls. Jones matched Haile groundstroke for groundstroke and punctuated each winning point with "come on!" and a fist pump.

Soon, Jones held the upper hand and never looked back.

Haile's unforced errors increased in the second set and the senior had her serve broken three times. She fell behind 4-1 and climbed to within 4-3, but couldn't break Jones' will.

Up 5-4, Jones seized three state-championship points at 40-0. She misfired on a forehand that sailed wide into the doubles alley, and created a little anxiety among the Patriot faithful. On the next point, Haile dropped an unforced error into the net, and the much-anticipated celebration began.

"It was tough, it was hard to focus," Jones said. "I tried my best and it worked. The first set, I struggled a little bit and was able to pull through. The second set, I think I had a lot of help from the sidelines [with] my team cheering me on and that really boosted me."

Sauls described the outcome as unbelievable and that it was his team's best performance of the season, especially in singles. With little room for error between the evenly-matched teams, it came down to something Sauls admits he can't teach or coach - mental toughness.

"When the points became critical, we played better," Sauls said. "I just know they wanted it. Apparently, in my opinion, they must have wanted it more."

Indeed, Coach.

Parrott Academy 5, St. David's 4

Doubles: Jones-Gorrin-Rivas (APA) d. Cook-Haile 8-5; Goracke-Anders (SD) d. Morris-Brydge 8-3; Christiano-Hood (APA) d. Holderness-George 8-4.

Singles: Cameron Jones (APA) d. Grace Haile 7-5, 6-4; Sydney Cook (SD) d. Erika Gorrin-Rivas 6-1, 6-2; Kate Goracke (SD) d. Allison Christiano 6-3, 6-2; Elizabeth Holderness (SD) d. Anna Morris 3-6, 6-1, 1-0 (6); Mary Helen Hood (APA) d. Rose Mary Anders 6-1, 6-1; Grace Brydge (APA) d. Anna Clayton Tanner 6-0, 6-2.

Records: Parrott 15-0, St. David's 10-6.

Notes: Parrott secured the 2011 state crown when team titles were determined by points on individual flight play in singles and doubles. … APA won all three meetings against St. David's this season. ... Patriots are 12-7 all-time in dual-team playoff matches. ... Since 2012, APA has amassed 97 dual-team victories.