Tornado rescue

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — The Chattanooga area was just about to endure a team finals shutout in tennis for the first time in 14 years.

Luckily, there was still McCallie.

The Blue Tornado overcame a tough Memphis University School team and won 4-1 to advance to the finals of the Division II-AA tournament, where they will face Knoxville Webb at 2 p.m. EDT today for the title. It would be the Tornado’s fourth consecutive.

McCallie lived up to its nickname in the first sets, losing a total of nine games in the five matches. MUS was able to tighten up the second sets, but Nathan Winters’ 6-0, 7-6 (7-3) win at No. 5 singles after trailing 4-1 in the second set sealed the win.

“I was real pleased with the way we played from start to finish,” McCallie coach Eric Voges said. “In every match, we started fast and well. We got down in some second sets but hung tough. Before the match, I had no idea how we were going to play, but the guys kept plugging.”

Also in boys’ action, Notre Dame’s first trip to the state tournament in 45 years didn’t fare so well, as the Irish fell 4-0 to Knoxville Catholic in the A/AA semifinals.

In girls’ play, GPS’s 4-1 loss to Hutchison in the semifinals of the Division II-AA tournament ended a long trend. No girls’ team from the Chattanooga area will be in the finals for the first time since the public-private school split. And GPS had won three state team titles in a row.

Eight defending state championships were lost Tuesday. St. Andrew’s-Sewanee, the defending Division II-A girls’ champion, fell 4-3 to St. George’s in the most competitive match of the day.

Chattanooga Christian, the four-time defending Class A/AA girls’ champion, fell 4-0 to Christian Academy of Knoxville.

“The girls showed a lot of heart and fight,” CCS coach Sue Webb said. “We had a great season — defeating Notre Dame, Boyd-Buchanan to win the region and Greenbrier to make it to state. They fought well and were the sweetest bunch of girls. They got along so well.”

A positive for all of the teams defeated Tuesday was their youth. A total of three seniors (Cleveland’s Patten Feehrer, GPS’s Anne Elizabeth Holley and CCS’s Anne Marie Rowe) will be lost from the four teams combined.

“Anne Marie was one of the best team captains we’ve had,” Webb said. “The good thing is, the girls will come in knowing what we’re up against next year. We have some things to work on.”