Indianola Academy sent three tennis teams to the North State Tournament in Clarksdale this week after placing in the district tournament. The school was represented in Boys #2 doubles, Mixed doubles, and Girls #1 doubles.
In the boys #2 doubles bracket, freshmen Aiden Jones and Dodd Simmons fought their way to the district finals after a rocky start. In their first match against Lee Academy of Clarksdale, the IA boys dropped the opening set 1-6, but bounced back with a 6-3 win in the second set.
The duo held out in the tiebreaker, edging out a 10-8 victory to secure the match. In the championship round against the No. 1 seed, Kirk Academy of Grenada, IA came out strong with a 6-3 first set win, but fell in the second set 1-6. The match came down to a third-set tiebreaker, where Kirk Academy narrowly pulled ahead, handing IA an 8-10 loss and the district runner-up title.
In mixed doubles, seniors James Hairston and Jilly Woodard dominated their first match with a 6-0, 6-0 sweep over Lee Academy.
Their next match against Kirk Academy, also the No. 1 seed, proved more challenging. After dropping the first set 3-6, the pair rallied to take the second set 6-4. The match went into a tiebreaker, but IA fell just short with a 6-10 loss, securing another district runner-up finish.
The highlight of the tournament for Indianola came from the girls #1 doubles team of senior Maggie Jenkins and junior Julia Davis.
The IA girls cruised past the Kirk Academy team in the first round, winning 6-1, 6-1. In the final round, they faced the No. 1 ranked North Delta School girls doubles team from Batesville. Jenkins and Davis captured the first set 6-2, but the second set was a battle.
After a seemingly unending exchange of deuce points, the teams tied at 6-6, forcing a 7-point tiebreaker that North Delta won, giving NDS the set win 6-7.
With the match tied at one set apiece, the championship came down to a 10-point tiebreaker. Jenkins and Davis emerged victorious with a 10-8 win, earning the district championship title and a trip to North State.
