Brad Templeton (Sr.), LaFayette

For the previous two seasons, Brad Templeton was a staple for the LaFayette Ramblers’ tennis lineup as a doubles player, alongside his partner Noah Matthews.

The duo put up an impressive 22-7 overall record in helping the Orange-and-Black stay near the top of the region standings.

But with graduation hitting the Ramblers hard last season, head coach Clint Harrison made the decision to split up the pair and move them up to singles in an effort to strength the overall lineup.

Templeton lost his first match as LaFayette’s No. 3 singles player, but it didn’t take him very long to get the hang of it as he went 11-3 the rest of the way, helping the Ramblers secure a 10-6 team record and a berth in the Class AAAA state tournament.

Today, the senior is being honored as the Walker County Boys’ Tennis Player of the Year.

“It was a pretty good year,” Templeton explained. “I was a little nervous at first, going from doubles to singles. I lost my very first match, but that really just gave me the motivation to try harder and it turned out pretty great.”

He said there were two major differences in playing singles as opposed to playing doubles.

“There’s a lot more running involved (in playing singles),” he said matter-of-factly. “And the players you play are usually a little better, but I think that made me a better overall player.”

LaFayette head coach Clint Harrison said Templeton became a much different player than he was when he first tried out for the team four years ago.

“He was small, but he worked hard and enjoyed practicing and playing,” the coach

said. “He won a few matches and lost a few that first year, but by his sophomore year, he was out to win. He really became a scrappy player with a noexcuses attitude.”

Harrison recalled a particularly memorable match of Templeton’s two years ago.

“It was in the region tournament and Brad and his doubles partner came back after being down 5-1 in the third set to win 7-5 and clinch a berth in the state tournament,” Harrison said. “Brad came off the court like he had nothing left in the tank and he talked about how much pressure there was, but how he didn’t want to let the other guys down. And I talked about how he responded to that pressure. It was a great experience.”

Templeton, who won 33 career matches with the Ramblers, said he hopes to attend college in the fall that he would miss playing tennis at LaFayette High.

“I’ll miss my teammates,” he added. “I’ve been playing since my freshmen year and it’s been great to experience tennis with all them. It’s really been fun.”