The Saint Xavier Tigers success in high school tennis in Kentucky is unmatched, but the Tigers completed a rare feat when they captured their sixth consecutive and 23rd overall state team championship this year. For just the fifth time in state history Saint Xavier won the team championship, singles championship and doubles championship in the same year.
"That's something we've been shooting for the last couple of years, and unfortunately we didn't get it last year," Lancaster said. "It was pretty nice to get it this year."
The Tigers, who finished as runner-up at the 2014 DecoTurf High School Tennis Team Championships, outscored their opponents 12-0 in team state tournament play. Saint X opened their State Championship match against McCracken County with a 1-0 behind freshman Drew Singerman's win at No. 2 singles. Tiger seniors Coleman Cox and Nick Quinones gave the team a 2-0 lead with their 6-3, 6-0 victory and junior Nick Waldeck's 6-2, 6-1 win clinched the state title for Saint Xavier.
"I've closed out a lot of matches but not one for the state championship, so it was a little bit extra meaning," Waldeck said. "I enjoyed that. It's been a long day, so it's good to put an end to it."
The Tigers overall sweep came one day later as the Tigers top player, junior Brandon Lancaster, won the Kentucky Singles State Championship avenging a loss from the 2013 state finals. Lancaster said "I just started going for more of my shots and decided that if I'm going to lose it's going to be on my terms, shots went in." The Kentucky Doubles State Championship featured a matchup of Saint Xavier Doubles teams with seniors Coleman Cox and Nick Quinones taking on Matt Graft and Nick Waldeck. The battle was especially tough for coach Kerry Lancaster who watched the doubles final from the grandstand, not wanting to choose sides on the court during the match. The duo of Graft and Waldeck eventually prevailed with an emotional 6-4, 4-6, 10-8 win.
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