State girls tennis: Cox gains semifinal; First Colonial ousted

VIRGINIA BEACH

Jenny Lee and Abbey Wexel had never played doubles together before Tuesday.

Too bad Wexel’s a senior because the duo made a formidable pair that provided the key point in the Cox girls tennis team advancing to the state semifinals. The Falcons survived W.T. Woodson and a scorching sun 5-3 at the Cox courts in a state quarterfinal.

Cox (13-1) will play defending state champion Mills Godwin at noon on Friday at Huntington Park in Newport News. The defending state champion Eagles defeated Osbourn Park 5-0 in another quarterfinal.

The Eastern Region champions looked en route to an easy time of it against the Northern Region runner-up, a team that knocked them out of last spring’s state semifinals. Except for Lee at No. 2 singles, all the Falcons won the first set, with Wexel and Stelie Reid cruising at Nos. 3 and 4, and Sally Goode overcoming blisters on her feet to win at No. 5. Cox’s top player, Faith Atiso, got a break when Woodson subbed in its No. 7 player for the injured Dana Hummel.

But second sets didn’t come as easily for the Falcons. At No. 6, Madeline Hajek dropped hers 6-1. Atiso, who won her first set 6-0 and led 5-2 in the second needed a monumental effort to dig herself outwhen Michelle Hoeg won four straight games. The Falcons freshman rallied back for 7-6.

“She wasn’t getting my balls back, and then all the sudden she started to,” Atiso said.

Hajek battled leg and feet problems before falling 6-3 in the final set, sending the dual to doubles.

Rather than pair region champions Atiso and Lee together, Falcons coach George Schwenk broke his top aces up, with Lee and Wexel at No. 2.

Their lack of play together hardly mattered once they were on court.

“We know each other from volleyball,” Wexel said.

“We’re both goofy,” Lee added.

The four-hour dual ended with Lee’s overhead smash, and for the fifth consecutive time, the Falcons are in the state semifinals.

Jefferson 5, First Colonial 0: The Eastern Region runners-up were swept by the Northern champions. Undefeated region champion Alex Ritter, a Patriot freshman, did not complete her match over Natalie Kirshner at No. 1 singles, leading 6-2, 4-4. The Patriots ended the season at 13-3.