MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – For the second straight season, Silverdale Baptist Academy tennis player Kai Lam got a taste of the action in the state tournament. He even took a step in the right direction, advancing to the Division II-A singles semifinals after falling in the quarters last year.
Next season, he hopes to be back – and he wants to bring the team with him.
Lam’s quest for a championship fell two wins short Thursday, when he lost 8-4 to Lausanne’s Danny Hamze at the Adams Tennis Center on a weather-altered day at the Spring Fling. Instead of the best-of-three format traditionally used, pro sets were played to try to combat bad weather in Murfreesboro, and the DII-AA quarterfinals and semifinals were held at Ensworth in Nashville.
The Chattanooga area had a solid day overall, with several players advancing to Friday’s finals, which start at 10 a.m. Eastern.
On the boys’ side, Arts & Sciences’s Ethan Porterfield reached in singles and Signal Mountain’s Drew and Nathan Morris in doubles in Class A. In DII-A, Collegedale Academy’s Ryan Lopez and Adam Svendsen are in the doubles finals, while five McCallie players will be in the DII-AA finals: Andreas Sillaste in singles, and Will Leathers and Colin Tuttle against Charlie Griffin and Henry Imorde in an all-Blue Tornado doubles final two days after the program won its third straight team championship.
On the girls’ side, Baylor’s Agda Laakso and Helen Guerry advanced to the DII-AA doubles final.
Photo Gallery
TSSAA tennis state tournaments on May 26, 2022
Meanwhile, Lam became the first Silverdale tennis player to win a match at the state tournament.
“I’m super happy because I know our school has not had a lot of teams do well and get to state,” Lam said. “It’s rewarding, and hopefully next year we’ll go to state or win state as a team.”
Silverdale qualified for the state playoffs for the first time this year, and Lam and head coach Mark Standefer believe the Seahawks can go even further with a little help.
“These guys are willing to work,” Standefer said. “If we had the courts where the guys could hit and play year-round and have that accessibility, you know, keeping them on campus? I’m telling you, this team would be state champions, 100%. That’s the only thing we’re actually missing this year to take it to the next level.
“I’ve got Kai. I’ve got my No. 2 guy (Aiden Standefer), and I’ve got some guys coming on next year, so we’ll be even tougher. Everybody’s looking forward to what we’re bringing in 2023.”
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3.