Overall tennis
The catalysts that led to Parkers Chapel’s success at the state tournament will have an opportunity to produce one last time this season when they take part in the state Overall tennis tournament today and Tuesday at Burns Park in North Little Rock.
Parkers Chapel tennis Coach Casey Rapp came to grips long ago that most of his players will always participate in multiple sports at the small Class 2A school in Union County.
From the looks of it, that hasn’t stopped them from playing at a high level on the hardcourts, especially last week during the state tournament in Jonesboro.
The Lady Trojans claimed the girls team title, while the Trojans took home third-place honors on the boys side.
The catalysts for those groups will have an opportunity to produce one last time this season when they take part in the state Overall tennis tournament today and Tuesday at Burns Park in North Little Rock.
Rapp will have at least four chances on Day 1 to see how some of his players will fare against the state’s best. Parkers Chapel has three doubles’ teams and one singles player playing at the event, which is one less than what both Jonesboro and Pulaski Academy have entered. Both of those teams won boys and girls state championships in Class 5A and 4A, respectively, last week.
The Lady Trojans’ Ali Looney and Bella Frisby, who won the state title in doubles,
will play Valley View’s Allison Shinnaberry and Hanna Hyneman in the opening round while their Parker Chapel teammates, Dure Thomas and Macie Wood, are set to face West Memphis’ duo of Samantha Holt and Taylor Brossett.
Parkers Chapel got an added bonus when freshman Kalli Martin, who finished third in girls singles at the state tournament, was invited when another player dropped out of the tournament. She will play
senior Katie Walling of Cave City in the first round as well.
Also, the Trojans’ Austin Looney and Spencer Frisby, the Class 2A runner-ups in boys doubles, square off against Teddy Jones and Charlie Brandom of Episcopal Collegiate.
All four matches are set for 9 a.m.
“I’m definitely a proud coach for sure,” Rapp said. “These kids I’ve known for most of their life. We’re a small school so I’ve seen them grow
up from kindergarten all the way through 12th grade. So getting to be a part of that and getting to see them succeed is just everything for me.”
A big portion of his teams’ success this season has been the play of his doubles standouts. According to Rapp, each of those tandems have their own styles that have allowed them to maintain dominant stretches of play.
“My No. 1 girls’ team [Looney and Frisby] are really methodical,” he explained.
“They hit open shots, control the pace of the game and are smart about how they play their opponents. My second doubles team [Thomas and Wood] is very powerful and good at the net. They’re athletes so they can cover a lot of the court.
“And for my boys team, one of them plays golf and one of them plays football, so getting them to practice together is not always the easiest thing. One’s a righty and one’s a lefty, so they controlled a lot of the court that way, and that helped a lot.”
Rapp noted that Austin Looney, who is also the twin brother of Ali, has played the season with a torn labrum but opted to hold off having surgery.
Still, he’s anxious to see how his group will cap their 2020 seasons after experiencing as much success as they did throughout the year.
“2A is normally seeded lower on the bracket, generally,” Rapp said. “My kids play at least four or five other sports so they don’t play tennis all year round. They’re going to be going up against players that specialize in tennis all year.
“So we’re looking at it as an experience to learn some things. They’re going to do their best, as always, but I also want them to have fun and enjoy this opportunity.”