Last weekend, the MUS tennis team went on their farthest road trip of the season to Atlanta as they competed in the annual Buckhead Rotary Tournament, an event the Owls have won before. Last season, the Owls reached the semifinals there but lost to Marist to end their run.
This season, the Owls traveled to Atlanta having played only one of their three scheduled opening matches because of rain.
In their first-round match, MUS fought past their opponent, edging out Northview High School, 3–2. Then the Owls moved on to play their semifinal opponent, host Westminister, a team the Owls beat in the same tournament last year.
However, the Wildcats, the six-time Georgia defending state tennis champions, avenged last year's loss as they defeated the Owls, 3-0, bringing the MUS tournament run to an end.
Coach Bill Taylor elaborated on the loss.
“It was the first time we’ve lost to them, but we had our opportunities. We just couldn’t pull it out,” said Taylor, who wasn’t too concerned since his team is playing without their number one player, William Lang.
Lang, who was out most of last season because of injury, is now suffering a fracture in his back. Although the team hopes his recovery will go quickly, the Owls have to stay focused on the matches at hand.
The team also had to recover after their loss in Atlanta, and they accomplished that feat in their next match against St. Benedict. This match started out smoothly but got rained out halfway through the match.
The Owls then were eager to get on the road to Jackson, TN, where they would face University School of Jackson.
The Owls came out with a 9 – 0 victory, but the score does not represent the quality of the match. It was close competition all across the board with the first three matches going to third-set tiebreaks. The Owls will have to deal with the toughness of USJ again in mid-April when they will come to the Owls’ home courts.