By the end of the match she had blisters on both her hands and feet and was crying almost as much from relief as joy.
Threehours and thirty minutes after Chantilly senior Kristi Kegerreis started her exhausting Northern Region girls singles championship match with Westfield freshman Yilian Zhang on Tuesday afternoon she finally walked off the court at Wakefield a winner, 7-5, 5-7, 7-5.
Of course, thirty minutes later she had to play in the region doubles final with teammate Annie Holm. But no matter. The adrenaline alone from winning her first region title was enough to get Kegerreis through.
“That’s the longest match I can remember playing,” said Kegerreis, who fought off six match points, starting at 0-40, while down 3-5 in the third set. “But I just to had to keep fighting. There was never a time where I didn’t think I could find a way to win.”
Kegerreis, who will play college tennis at Georgia Southern, had beaten Zhang in the Concorde District final on May 12, her second straight district title, and once during the regular season. But Zhang (9-4), ranked No. 4 among under-16-year-olds in the Mid-Atlantic Region by the United States Tennis Association, has made her mark on the region this spring. She beat Kegerreis in their first match of the regular season on March 22. Both players advance to the Group AAA state singles tournament next month.
The boys region final was also contested between two familiar opponents. Robinson sophomore Drew Courtney again beat Chantilly senior Thomas Nolan, the defending region and state champion, 5-7, 6-1, 6-0. It was Courtney’s second win over Nolan this month after winning in the Concorde District final. Nolan (18-2) beat Courtney (21-2) twice during the regular season, including a 10-3 drubbing on May 2.
“I definitely improved my speed and endurance over the summer and that’s important against Thomas because he’s so good on the run,” said the 6-foot-3 Courtney, who lost to Nolan in the region semifinals last season and had beaten him just twice in eleven attempts, including USTA events, entering the match. “Now, I’m pumped for the state tournament.”
Match notes
» Robinson sophomore Drew Courtney and senior Mike Smith won their second straight Northern Region doubles title, 6-1, 6-0, over Chantilly seniors Thomas Nolan and Bruce Chung.
» Robinson hosts Douglas Freeman in the state team tournament quarterfinals next Tuesday.
» In the girls doubles final, Robinson’s Lindsey Hardenbergh and Christine Tran defeated Chantilly seniors Kristi Kegerreis and Annie Holm, 7-5, 6-2.
