One of the most impressive feats this spring by a Chattanooga-area prep athlete came courtesy of Arts & Sciences senior Ethan Porterfield.
When Porterfield was not covering tons of ground on the tennis court or serving up an ace, the Patriots’ two-sport star was leading the way on the baseball diamond, pitching complete games and hitting home runs in a 23-win season.
With a powerful arm and swing, Porterfield won the TSSAA Class 1A singles state championship as the NAIA University of Tennessee-Southern signee finished off a perfect 17-0 season.
Porterfield outscored his state singles competition 37-16, on his way to winning six of seven sets to become the first state champion in boys tennis for the Patriots since 2004. His outstanding performance on the tennis court this season earned him the Times Free Press Best of Preps Guerry Boys Tennis Award along with a spot on the Tennessee Sports Writers Association’s all-state tennis teams, which were announced Friday.
As an all-district selection in baseball, he led CSAS by hitting .443 with four home runs and 27 RBIs to go along with a .542 on-base percentage. Porterfield was also the team’s ace with a 2.19 ERA over 63 2/3 innings in which he had 70 strikeouts opposed to 20 walks.