Regardless of the venue, the Notre Dame tennis team was ready to play Friday.
The Irish advanced to their second consecutive Class A/AA state tournament with a 4-0 victory over Arts and Sciences at Manker Patten Tennis Club. The match, which was originally scheduled to be played at the Champions Club, was moved because of the threat of rain.
Notre Dame (14-1) will face Madison Academic High School at 4 p.m. EDT on Tuesday at Old Fort State Park in the semifinals. The other semifinal will pit David Lipscomb against the winner of the sectional match between the Christian Academy of Knoxville and Unicoi County.
In Friday’s match, John Dorris, Chip Jabaley, Charlie Ponitz and Nick Wurm had victories. Dorris and Jabaley lost a total of three games in claiming straight-set victories, while Ponitz’s match was the closest, as he defeated CSAS’s Andrew Ball 6-4, 6-4.
“I think after last year, the guys started working that much harder to get back,” Notre Dame coach Anne Ricksecker said. “They’ve improved over last year and came together and it’s so nice.
“The guys are there for each other and help each other out.”
Ricksecker admitted that she goes into every match not only as a coach, but also as a cheerleader.
“I could brag all day about my team,” she said. “They play so well and give 110 percent every time they’re on the court. They’ve learned that if they don’t win the first point, or the first game, or the first set that the match still isn’t over and they makes them play that much harder.
“They’ve always had the skills, and now the focus is there. They’re not just playing, but they’re thinking out there.”