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District tennis: Wiregrass Ranch boys cruise

 
Published April 11, 2017

TAMPA — Wiregrass Ranch won its eighth straight boys district tennis championship Tuesday afternoon at Hunter's Green. That's not surprising. What was surprising is that this was the first time the Bulls swept all singles and doubles matches in claiming the championship.

"In years past it seemed like we'd have some guys missing, but this year it all worked out," Wiregrass Ranch coach Dave Wilson said.

They were certainly dominant in the Class 4A, District 6 tournament.

In the No. 1 singles final, Noah Makarome swept Newsome's Spencer Shrader 6-0, 6-0. Makarome, a senior who plays in national junior tournaments, decided to play high school tennis for the first time. He has not lost a singles or doubles match this season. Makarome teamed with Jared Abrams to win No. 1 doubles 6-1, 6-0.

"I would've probably played (high school tennis) earlier but it always clashed with national or international tournaments," said Makarome, who will play tennis at the University of Pennsylvania in the fall. "This year I was freer so I ended up playing. … The format is different. Usually it's singles and you're playing for yourself. This is playing for your team, which is different and fun."

Other winners for Wiregrass Ranch were Kanishkh Ramesh and No. 2 singles, Destiny Okungbowa at No. 3, Jared Abrams at No. 4 and Josh Abrams at No. 5. At No. 2 doubles, Kamesh and Okungbowa won 6-1, 6-0.

The Bulls will host a region semifinal next Tuesday. Plant City and Strawberry Crest tied for second. They will play a dual match on Wednesday to determine which team goes to regionals.

In the girls tournament, Newsome finished first with 17 points. Wiregrass Ranch was second with 13. Durant's Maggie Pate won No. 1 singles over Newsome's Carter Nettina to earn an automatic spot in the state tournament.

At No. 1 doubles, Nettina and Tess Studdiford defeated Precious Okungbowa and Phoebe Teo of Wiregrass Ranch in three sets to earn an automatic bid to states. In the other championship matches, Newsome's Studdiford won at No. 2 singles, Newsome's Stephanie Solters at No. 3, Newsome's Sugriva Forsyth at No. 4 and Wiregrass Ranch's Lisy Gonzalez at No. 5. Newsome's Solters and Forsyth prevailed at No. 2 doubles.