Cascade Duo Trims Ferris To Claim Title

Cascade High School’s team of Courtney Craft and Jenny Mayes overcame two match points to defeat K.C. Richards and Darcy Ruemping of Ferris 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 in girls doubles at the State AAA tennis championships Saturday afternoon at the Spokane Racquet Club.

Trailing 5-3 in the final set, Craft and Mayes faced elimination before rallying to give Cascade its first team title. Kentwood placed second with nine points, while Ferris and Sammamish tied for third with seven points.

“We just kept being aggressive and played to win,” Craft said. “I wasn’t playing how I wanted to, and that brought us down some. But we kept playing our game and not (playing) to lose.”

Richards said she and Ruemping could find little solace from their second-place showing.

“We’re disappointed because we really feel like we could have won the match,” Richards said. “We had two opportunities and we just couldn’t pull through. They played well, and it’s unfortunate that we came all this way and couldn’t pull it out.”

In the singles final, Kentwood’s Zeta Wagner defeated Peggy Wu of Sammamish 6-4, 6-4.

Wagner was the top girls seed at the tournament, and despite winning the title, she also had few good things to say about her performance.

“I can’t remember doing anything well,” she said. “My serves weren’t going in, and my backhands and forehands were the worst I’ve ever seen them. I think it was mental - I wanted to win and I was going to stay out there all day until it turned out my way.”

Wagner upset Wu 6-4, 7-5 at a tournament last month and said it felt strange to be the favorite in their latest encounter. She also said both players felt the magnitude of being just one win away from a state championship.

“She’s (Wu) a really good player, but we both were nervous,” Wagner said. “It wasn’t really a game of skill, but of stamina and courage and who really wanted to win.”

Wagner downed Kent Meridian’s Ingrid Bakke 6-2, 6-2 in one semifinal, while Wu beat Sara Ust of Eastlake 7-6, 6-2 in the other.

In the consolation round, Cascade’s Jessia Radford defeated University’s Leslie Whitten 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-1.