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Grizz tennis a notch above By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings AHS boys MEDFORD - Arms around shoulders, forming a perfect circle, the Ashland High boys tennis team gathered on Court One at North Medford High School Saturday morning to go over its district tournament plan one last time. "We're a real tight-knit team," said Ashland coach Dick Streng of the team huddle, a rarity in one of the most individual prep sports. "It's kind of what we've traditionally been doing. It kind of brings us all together." And with that, one of best days in Ashland boys tennis history began. The Grizzlies ran away with the team title, took first and second in the doubles tournament and "settled" for second and fourth in singles to cap off a district tournament that can only be counted among the program's most successful. They finished with a team score of 46 - 16 more than runner-up North Medford (30) - and were a part of pretty much every major tournament highlight. From Jonathan Willing's stunning run to the semifinals, to Ari Zaslow and Evan Schleining's unparalleled domination of the doubles tournament, the Grizzlies gave Ashland fans a week to remember and a reason to look forward to the Class 4A state tournament, to be held Thursday through Saturday at the Tualatin Hills Tennis Center in Beaverton. Zaslow and Schleining won the district crown with a light-hearted 6-1, 6-1 victory over teammates Kevin Spears and Tyler Coke; the Grizzlies top singles player, Michael James, beat Willing in the semis before losing to top-seeded Tyler Wilson of North Medford in the singles final, 6-2, 6-1; and Willing lost the fourth-place match to South Medford's Ben Works, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2. Those six Grizzlies wrapped up state berths two days earlier by advancing to the district final four, giving Ashland six state qualifiers - a number Streng called "Monstrous." "It might be historic for our tennis," Streng said. The featured match of the day was between Wilson and second-seeded James, but the clash failed to live up to the hype. Both entered the singles championship on the heels of three blowouts, and both anticipated a hard-fought battle for first place, but Wilson exploded out of the gate and never let up en route to another one-sided victory. Wilson's win earned the junior his second straight SOC title and helped him secure the No. 3 seed in the state singles tournament. "I think I played really well," said Wilson, who improved to 8-1 on the season, with his lone loss coming at the hands of Zaslow. "It was kind of tough out there because of the wind � so I just wanted to stay solid and play the percentages and keep mentally focused out there." James, a senior who is headed to the University of Montana on a tennis scholarship, did all he could to make Wilson's repeat as breezy as the conditions. He struggled all match long to keep the ball in play, consistently driving out routine ground strokes and netting tentative approach shots. "Tyler is a very tough competitor, he's a very tough player," James said. "Today, I was setting up the points well, I just wasn't executing well at all, that was the main thing." Wilson, a thin, crafty all-court player, won the first three games of the match, including a break at love in Game 2 that set the tone. James, a big, powerful baseline slugger, took two of the next three games to get within 4-2 before Wilson took advantage of four unforced errors and two double faults to win the next two games and clinch the set. The second set featured longer points and longer games but the same result. Three of the first four games went to deuce and Wilson eventually pulled out each on his way to a 5-0 lead. Fittingly, the match ended with James pushing a service return long. "He's very solid on both sides, but I felt that maybe if I kept it to the backhand a little bit more, moved him around, it might be a little more beneficial," said James, who spent last year at a tennis academy in California. "I felt that overall, the plan and the idea worked, I just wasn't working. I was getting the short ball where I could attack and come in, I just wasn't finishing the point and that's crucial and I didn't do it. "It was just, I haven't played a lot of people like Tyler," James added. "He's a lot tougher. It's a different ball that I haven't seen a lot since I've been here." James' loss was one of the few dull moments for the Grizzlies in an otherwise rousing day. He'll get a chance to redeem himself Thursday, when he faces sixth-seeded Steven Ly, a senior from Centennial, in the first round of the 36-player state tournament. Willing, who won two three-setters to get to the semis, will take on Lakeridge sophomore Micah Gregory Thursday in a play-in match. Coke and Spears, who entered districts as the No. 3 seed, bounced the second-seeded North Medford team of Mateo Mingis and Clint Russell, 6-2, 6-1, in one of two one-sided doubles semifinal affairs. Zaslow and Schleining destroyed Roseburg's Daniel Lander and Andrew Besson, 6-2, 6-0, in the other semifinal, before pulling off a near identical number vs. their teammates in the finals. In the semis, Coke and Spears, both seniors, were clutch, winning virtually every pressure point and, thus, every pressure game. Of the eight games that went to deuce, the Coke-Spears combo won six, including the one that clinched the first set and the one that clinched the match. Their performance in districts earned Coke and Spears the No. 6 seed at state, where Ashland's second best combo will open against Tryel Love and Patt Wurtz of Bend on Friday. Zaslow and Schleining had hoped their second-place finish at the Jesuit Tournament about a month ago would earn them the No. 2 seed at state and they got their wish. They're on the bottom half of the bracket, opposite the top-seeded duo of Ryan and Austin Rifkin of West Linn - who beat Zaslow and Schleining in the Jesuit tourney final - but on the same half of the bracket as third-seeded Phalkun Mam and Charles Tran of McKay. Zaslow, a senior, and Schleining, a sophomore, open the 36-team tourney with a match against Sam Jewell and Michael Stringfield of Willamette on Friday. TEAM SCORES - Ashland 46, North Medford 30, Roseburg 20, South Medford 19, Grants Pass 17, Klamath Union 8. SINGLES SEMIFINALS - Tyler Wilson, NM, d. Ben Works, SM, 6-2, 6-0; Michael James, A, d. Jonathan Willing, A, 6-1, 6-0. FINALS - Wilson d. James, 6-2, 6-1. CONSOLATION - Ben Works, SM, d. Jonathan Wiling, A, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2. DOUBLES SEMIFINALS - Ari Zaslow-Evan Schleining, A, d. Daniel Lander-Andrew Besson, R, 6-2, 6-0; Kevin Spears-Tyler Coke, A, d. Mateo Mingis-Clint Russell, NM, 6-2, 6-1. FINALS - Zaslow-Schleining, A, d. Spears-Coke, A, 6-1, 6-1. CONSOLATION - Mingus-Russell, NM, d. Lander-Bessen, R, 6-2, 6-4. AHS girls Staff and Wire Reports ROSEBURG - The Ashland High girls tennis team locked up the Southern Oregon Conference district team title in convincing fashion Saturday, finishing with 42 points to cap a perfect league season. The Grizz girls went 10-0 in league dual meets and 12-0 overall before staking a commanding lead through Day One of the district tournament Thursday. They couldn't add to that lead Saturday, garnering a pair of third-place match victories and one semifinal win after advancing two doubles teams and two singles players to the semifinals, but still left town as district champs. "They're pretty fired up," Ashland head coach Karl Carstensen said. "This is the first (AHS district title) in seven years, I think. It was nice to go undefeated, but we had a mission to accomplish at the tournament and all the girls really stepped up." The win snaps North Medford's district title streak at six. Becky Correll made quick work of both opponents Saturday to claim the SOC singles championship. Correll, Roseburg's No. 1 competitor, breezed past Ashland's Lauren Sargent, 6-0, 6-0, in the semifinals then duplicated her efforts in the finals with another 6-0, 6-0 win over the Grizzlies' Kayla Moyse. Correll's efforts pushed the Indians to second place in team points with 34, while North Medford finished third with 32. Sargent bounced back with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Stacy Wetmore to grab third place. Moyse defeated Wetmore, 7-5, 6-2, in the semifinals to advance to the championship match. The Black Tornado put two doubles teams into the championship match. Shannon Leever and Annie Chaney, who lost in the Class 4A state finals last season, outlasted the other North duo of McKenzie Hilmer and Lauren Wilson, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, to claim the doubles crown. "It was unfortunate for us (finishing third)," said North coach Dale Jensen. "Our strength again this year was doubles and that showed, but overall we weren't as strong as in the past. "The other teams played well though, so you have to give them a lot of credit." Ashland's top doubles tandem of Jessica Baker and Justine Bowen-Jones was eliminated from championship competition with a 6-3, 7-6 (3) semifinal loss to Leever and Chaney. Ashland's Kate Morris and Chelsea Van Lehn also lost in the semis, 6-1, 6-2, to Hilmer and Wilson. Baker and Bowen-Jones defeated Morris and Van Lehn, 6-2, 6-2, in the third-place match. Moyse stormed back from a 4-1 first-set deficit to beat Wetmore. Carstensen said that emotional comeback may have cost Wetmore vs. Sargent in the third-place match. "It may have rattled her a little bit," Carstensen said. Each semifinal competitor earned a berth into the OSAA Class 4A state tournament held at the Portland Tennis Center. Singles play begins Thursday with four play-in matches and 16 first-round affairs, while doubles play kicks off with four play-in matches Thursday and 24 first and second-round matches Friday. Moyse, a freshman, opens the 36-player state singles tournament with a match against Tualatin senior Shannon Murphy. Sargent, a junior, takes on eighth-seeded Rachel Berger, a sophomore from Hermiston, in the first round. "Well, you can never tell," Carstensen said of his singles player's chances. "If they play the way they're capable of playing, anything can happen." Carstensen was frustrated with Ashland's placement in the singles bracket, however. If Moyse and Sargent both win their first two matches, they'll meet in the quarterfinals. In the 36-team doubles tournament, Baker and Bowen-Jones, both seniors, will take on the St. Mary's duo of Fanny Adams and Jocelyn Newhouse in the opening round. Van Lehn and Kate Morris are one of eight teams involved in Thursday's play-in round. They'll take on Samantha Jordan and Meredith Carlile of South Albany for the right to play in the final 28. Chaney and Leever, who lost to Baker and Bowen-Jones during the regular season, garnered the No. 1 seed at state and could meet their Ashland counterparts in the semifinals Saturday morning. Baker and Bowen-Jones have a shot at capturing a state title, said Carstensen, but, "they have to cut down on errors and they've got to play their best tennis now. If they do that, they've got a good chance at meeting back up with Annie and Shannon again." On the whole, Carstensen likes his team's chances of pulling out some wins. "We just want to see the girls play well," he said. "If they do that, everything else will kind of take care of itself." Saturday's Results Team Scores - Ashland 42, Roseburg 34, North Medford 32, Grants Pass 15, Klamath Union 9, South Medford 8. SINGLES Semifinals - Becky Correll, Ros, d. Lauren Sargent, Ash, 6-0, 6-0; Kayla Moyse, Ash, d. Stacy Wetmore, Ros, 7-5, 6-2. Finals - Correll d. Moyse, 6-0, 6-0. Third Place - Sargent d. Wetmore, 7-5, 6-3. Consolation Finals - Ellie Casey, Klamath Union, d. Ashleigh Ingeldew, South Medford, 7-5, 6-1. DOUBLES Semifinals - McKenzie Hilmer-Lauren Wilson, North Medford, d. Kate Morris-Chelsea Van Lehn, Ashland, 6-1, 6-2; Shannon Leever-Annie Chaney, North Medford, d. Jessica Baker-Justine Bowen-Jones, Ashland, 6-3, 7-6 (7-3). Finals - Leever-Chaney d. Hilmer-Wilson, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. Third Place - Baker-Bowen-Jones d. Morris-Van Lehn, 6-2, 6-2. Consolation Final - Ashley Hurst-Rebecca Weicher, Grants Pass, d. Janell Petersen-Rachel Ryan, North Medford, 6-2, 5-7, 6-1. 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