MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - After a one-year hiatus, the GPS tennis team is going back to the state finals.
With an old friend waiting.
The Bruisers won 4-2 over Hutchison in the Division II-AA semifinals Tuesday at the Adams Tennis Center. They will face Chattanooga rival Baylor, which dominated Ensworth 4-0 to advance to its eighth consecutive state-title match, in search of its seventh state championship in a row.
The Baylor boys defeated McCallie 4-0 in the semifinals and will face Montgomery Bell Academy in the final today at 10 a.m. EDT.
The Bruisers fell 4-3 to Hutchison in last year's semifinals, ending a string of six straight finals appearances, beginning with the 2010 title. Singles wins came from Corinne Spann, Ellie Edwards and Barbie Edwards, and Spann with Maddox Bandy and Kate Thel with Ali West earned doubles wins.
"I think this is amazing for Chattanooga tennis, that we can consistently do this," GPS coach Sue Bartlett said.
Baylor and GPS have won 10 of the last 11 Division II-AA state championships.
"We try to celebrate coming to Spring Fling, but our expectations have always been high," Bartlett added. "When you get to the final, anything is possible."
The Lady Red Raiders' Lilly Mooney, Presley Thomas and Landie McBrayer did the scoring against Ensworth. Thomas and McBrayer teamed for a win in doubles and won also in singles, while Mooney had the third singles win and teamed with Lauren Carelli for a doubles victory.
McCallie split the first two doubles matches and was winning 4-1 in the point-deciding match, but Baylor's Edward O'Neal and Ethan Palisoc rallied for an 8-5 win. Alec Kadrie, Ben Taverne and Ryan Toomey then claimed singles win to get the Red Raiders back to their second consecutive final.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenleytfp.