WALLBURG — Ledford had a bit of a rocky start to the playoffs, but it still made it work.
The sixth-seeded Panthers struggled their way through illnesses to earn a split in singles, then won two of three in doubles to edge 27th-seeded Oak Grove 5-4 on Monday at Ledford in the first round of the NCHSAA 3A West dual-team girls tennis playoffs.
“Considering the factors, we gutted one out,” Ledford coach Jason Anderson said. “Having to play a conference foe in the first round, somebody that’s familiar with you and you with them — I think they were missing a couple too.
“I was very impressed with how resilient their girls were. So, it came down to doubles and needing to win two out of three. We got the two wins we needed, and we’ll move on to the next round and see what happens.”
The Panthers advanced to face No. 11 North Lincoln in the second round Wednesday. The winner of that match will take on either No. 3 Atkins or No. 14 West Rowan in the third round Monday — following the individual state championships Friday and Saturday.
“I felt great about getting the win,” said Clodfelter, who won the 3A Midwest regional singles title and will play in this weekend’s 3A tournament in Burlington. “This is a great team and they’re super nice and have great sportsmanship. It’s always nice to play a team that knows how to play fair, so I appreciate that.”
Clodfelter and Katherine Goodman earned convincing singles wins at Nos. 1 and 2 for the Panthers (15-4), who were without No. 3 Sallie Hagee. The rest of the singles order moved up a spot — and Antonella Santillan came away with a key win at No. 5 for a 3-3 tie heading to doubles.
The Grizzlies’ Sophia Broverman-Chappell won a lengthy match at No. 3, while No. 4 Annelise Richardson and No. 6 Cora Hadley played well to keep the match much closer than the conference rivals’ regular-season meetings in which Ledford won 7-2 and 8-1.
Clodfelter and Avery Dunbar teamed to sweep their No. 1 doubles match, while Goodman and Mia Yoemans finished strong at No. 2 to clinch the win. Cora and Emma Hadley won at No. 3 for Oak Grove (6-9).
“I felt confident going into doubles,” Clodfelter said. “Avery’s a great player and I felt like we were going to do well. And we ended up doing great. Emeline (Rich) and Antonella are kind of new players. So, they had a rough match, but I think they still had fun — and that’s why I play, to have fun and be competitive.
“They started off a little slow at 2-seed doubles. But by the end they were locked in and ready to play. … Going into Wednesday we’re going to try our hardest. Hopefully our 3 seed, Sallie Hagee, will be back. She’s a great player and she really does benefit the team.”
And now the Panthers, who won the Mid-Piedmont Conference, will take on North Lincoln (14-3) in the second round.
“It’s a rough way to start the playoffs,” Anderson said with a chuckle. “The only thing I have to compare it to is basketball. But sometimes you come out here and expect to win but you end up in a dogfight. And sometimes those dogfights can help you down the line.”
LEDFORD 5, OAK GROVE 4
Helen Clodfelter (LHS) def. Victoria Lockamy 6-0, 6-0; Katherine Goodman (LHS) def. Sara Davis 6-0, 6-1; Sophia Broverman-Chappell (OG) def. Avery Dunbar 6-6 (7-2), 6-2; Annelise Richardson (OG) def. Mia Yoemans 6-2, 6-0; Antonella Santillan (LHS) def. Sydney Portis 6-1, 6-0; Cora Hadley (OG) def. Emeline Rich 6-1, 6-0
Clodfelter/Dunbar (LHS) def. Lockamy/Davis 8-0; Goodman/Yoemans (LHS) def. Broverman-Chappell/Richardson 8-4; C. Hadley/Emma Hadley (OG) def. Santillan/Rich 8-1
