GAINESVILLE, Ga. — The North Hall girls tennis team is headed to the Class 4A championship for the first time in school history.
The Lady Trojans knocked off Holy Innocents 3-2 at home on Thursday to advance to next week's finals at the Rome Tennis Center at Berry College. They'll play the winner of the Pace Academy-Westminster match on Saturday, May 13.
"They weren't nearly as nervous as I was," North Hall coach Bob Woodworth said. "We're a mostly young team, so they were unaware of how special this is, and that kept them playing tennis like they usually play. They just played like it was a regular match on any other day."
No. 3 singles Lilly Perry dominated her opponent to seal the match for the Lady Trojans. She won 6-2, 6-1.
No. 2 singles Gabbie Jenkins also controlled her match, winning in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2. North Hall's No. 1 doubles team of Riley Morgan and Maggie Perry won a nailbiter, 6-4, 6-3.
The win is just another chapter of the Lady Trojans' Cinderella season.
"We started with some young raw talent and a tough schedule with tournaments full of good competition," Woodworth said. "We learned from some losses and grew and peaked today.
"We went to the region tournament as a No. 2 seed but stole the region championship in a thrilling win to earn home matches throughout playoffs and just kept improving."