MUS Sports News

Tennis Claims Another Region Title

The local competition in the West Region has never presented much of a challenge to the dominant force of the MUS Tennis team. The Owls proved that fact once more this past week as they won their eleventh straight regional title at the Dunavant-Wellford Tennis Center.

The Owls were prepared to play in the Regional Tournament on Monday but were forced to wait two days for their first match because of rain. The weather moved the tournament indoors where the Owls faced St. George’s and prevailed, 4-0. 

Coach Taylor's squad then advanced to the finals where they shut out rival CBHS, 5-0, to claim the title -- again.

Before this victory in the Regional Team Tournament, the Owls got to display their talent in the Regional Individual Tournament last week. 

In singles, junior William Lang dispatched a CBHS foe in the final for a first-place finish. 

And in doubles, the Owls made it an all-MUS final as Watson George and Spencer Heflin won a good match, 6-1 6-4, over Michael Wills and Will Carter.

The Owls now look to the state tournament in Murfreesboro, beginning May 23. MUS will attempt to complete what they are calling the “pseudo-octet," having won seven of the last eight state titles.

Tennis Team Gets Shutout Wins

Last week, the varsity tennis Owls had one of their bigger weeks of the year, taking on two of the better squads in West Tennessee and coming out of top in both team matches.

Last Tuesday, the Owls came off a four-day weekend break refreshed and ready to take on University School of Jackson. The last time the Owls played USJ, MUS beat them, 9–0, in Jackson, but three matches went to close tiebreaks. This time the match was at MUS, but the scoreboard would not change as the Owls once again won, 9–0.

Not only did the Owls best players play, but also some younger members of the team got some experience too because of extra players that USJ brought.

The Owls then took the court Thursday to play their rivals, CBHS.  The Brothers didn’t put up much of a fight as the Owls rolled, 9 – 0.

Now MUS looks to the Francis E. Carter Tournament in Nashville. 

The tournament, which spans from April 28-29, is the last competition for the Owls before the Regional Individual Tournament, which starts the first day of May. Last season, the Owls took second in the Francis Carter Tournament.

Although the Owls have been juggling their roster from time to time, the order of players looks to be in place for the tournament season. 

The top five singles spots will be filled by William Lang, Spencer Heflin, Watson George, Alex Addington, and Will Carter. The doubles teams will be Lang/Heflin and George/Carter. The MUS coaches are confident that this lineup will produce the best postseason results.

Tennis Team Recovers After Buckhead

Ever since the MUS tennis team was sent home early from the Buckhead Rotary Tournament, the Owls have turned around and rolled over all their opponents. 

The team has competed in five local matches since the Buckhead Rotary, and they have come out on top each time.  Four of the Five matches were 9-0 shutouts, demolishing opponents from University School of Jackson, Briarcrest, ECS, St. George’s, and Tipton-Rosemark.

The Owls are also pleased to have junior William Lang back on the court as he recently recovered from a back injury. 

“He’s feeling better and practicing, but we’re not going to have him playing in matches just yet,” said Coach Bill Taylor. 

Taking into account the past five matches, the Owls have no reason to risk their number-one player.

The next opponent for the Owls will be University School of Jackson when they come to Memphis to play the Owls again. When the two teams met in Jackson two weeks ago, the Owls won 9 – 0, but the score did not do justice to the extremely close matches. 

“They’re probably the second best team in all of West Tennessee,” said sophomore player Watson George. 

The Owls also have the postseason in the back of their minds, as the state title has always been their annual goal.

Tennis Fights Rain And Opponents

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.

Tennis Travels To Atlanta

This week, the Owls came back from Spring Break re-energized and ready to start their season. 

Unfortunately, rain on Monday forced MUS to cancel their first match with Tipton-Rosemark.  But skies cleared on Tuesday, and the Owls took the court against Lausanne to start the season, easily defeating the Lynx, 7-2.

Looking for their eighth state title in the last nine years, the team will carry their winning mindset to Atlanta, Georgia, this weekend for the annual Buckhead Rotary Tournament. 

Last season, the Owls won their first match at this prestigious tournament only to suffer a rare and disappointing loss to Marist (GA).  Every year, the Buckhead Tournament brings the best teams from several states together. 

This tournament will certainly be a test to see whether the Owls can continue their traditional dominance.

Tennis Team Gears Up for Season

If one were to review the athletic programs at MUS, the dominance of one sport would definitely stand out.

For a decade, the Owls have dominated the tennis competition at the state level and have become the team to beat coming into every season under Coach Bill Taylor. As the last of winter sports competition has now ended, the tennis Owls are once again ready to retain their dominance.

Last year the Owls lost seven seniors that led the squad to the 2005 state title. Three of these seniors were in the top six singles spots, and two were the three-time reigning state-champion doubles team. Although significant talent was lost in those seven, the Owls are filling those leadership spots with seniors Andrew Alexander, Zach Glover, Bryce Hendry, Spencer Heflin, Joe Hooker, and Mike Montesi.

The starting spots on the tennis team are determined by a challenge system, and the overall decision goes to the coaches. Right now, the only spots that seem locked up are the top two singles positions which will go to junior William Lang and Heflin, who recently signed to play college tennis with University of Memphis. Other players capable of making regular singles appearances are junior Alex Addington, sophomores Watson George and Michael Wills, and freshman Will Carter, who transferred to MUS this year from ECS.

This season the Owls also have new faces that should get some valuable experience in their first varsity experiences. Including Carter, other freshmen who have bright futures include Grant Hopkins, Jackson Knight, and Walt Wepfer.

MUS tennis teams have won seven of the last eight state championships, and this year’s team is looking to attain what they call the “pseudo-octapeat.” They should face quality foes at the state level such as Baylor, MBA, and McCallie. 

“The goal is always to win state, and this year we can do it if our top guys stay healthy and play well,” says an optimistic Coach Taylor.

The Owls’ first match is March 20 against Tipton Rosemark.

Soccer and Tennis Start Postseason Run

Both the soccer and tennis teams are kicking off the postseason in the same position -- defending state champions.  The tennis squad is a little more familiar with the role, winning six of the past seven years, while the soccer team’s title was only its second ever.  Both teams had great regular seasons once again this year, each suffering only two losses.

The soccer team kicked off its postseason with an astounding 8-0 victory over regional-tournament opponent St. Benedict as they advanced to the semifinals against ECS.

With a berth in the state tournament going to the winner, MUS claimed their spot with a hard-fought 3-1 victory over the Eagles.  Though the Owls lost in the regional final against CBHS, 3-1, MUS still has the two-seed from the West and will look to defend their crown at Mike Rose starting next week.

The tennis team is also looking forward to state competition with their regional individual competition complete.  The Owls have already established momentum with their 1st-place finish in the regional team tournament.  They also dominated the individual tournament with two all-MUS finals.  Alex Guyton and Bo Ladyman won the doubles title, defeating Watson George and Worth Morgan, and sophomore William Lang took the singles title with a win over junior Spencer Heflin.

Both teams have established enough dominance in their regular seasons to be legitimate contenders for state titles.  However, with soccer squads like CBHS and Knoxville Webb and with tennis giants Baylor and McCallie, the roads for both teams will be difficult.  But Coach Vincent Beck and Coach Bill Taylor look forward to the challenge and are confident in their squads.

Owl Tennis Takes Team Regionals

Last week, the MUS varsity tennis team competed in the Regional Tournament to qualify for state competition.  In this stage of the postseason, teams compete with five singles matches and three doubles matches; the first team to win five of those matches wins that round.

The Owls opened with Briarcrest in the semifinals at MUS last Tuesday.  Quickly winning the five singles matches, the Owls easily defeated the Saints and advanced to the regional finals.  Looking for their tenth consecutive region team title, the Owls then faced CBHS and completed a sweep of the tournament with another 5-0 shutout.

In their impressive regional win, the Owls were led by seniors Bo Ladyman and Alex Guyton and junior Spencer Heflin as their top three singles players.  The Owls will carry their momentum from team regionals into individual regional competition, which begins Monday, May 9, at MUS. 

With an excellent regular season, the Owls are looking ahead to the State Tournament where they may face tough opponents in Baylor and McCallie, but head coach Bill Taylor likes the Owls’ chances if they can stay healthy.

Tennis Team Readies For Postseason

The varsity tennis Owls have been taking the court since March when they began their season in the same manner in which they had finished – on top.  The tennis program at MUS has always been one of the strongest sports organizations within the school and region.  This year is no different as the Owls continue to dominate the West Tennessee tennis scene.  The Owls opened their season with eight straight shutout wins over area contenders such as CBHS, Jackson Prep, ECS, and other opponents.

The Owls' scoreboard perfection propelled them into one of the larger prep tournaments in the south, the Buckhead Rotary Tournament in Atlanta.  MUS had taken first in Atlanta for the past three years, establishing the level of expectation to defend their title once again this year.  However, the Owls suffered an untimely loss in the second round to Marist (GA) 3-1.

Now the tennis squad is preparing and regaining confidence as they look to the postseason.  After having finished second in the Francis E. Carter Tournament, which they won in 1999 and 2000, in Nashville this past weekend, the team hopes that they can bring back the winning trends and gain momentum for the impending postseason.  Good luck to Coach Taylor and the tennis team.

Tennis State Title Loss Ends Five-Year Run

Some may say that the dynasty is over. Others may say that the king is dead. However, anyone who knows anything about high-school tennis in Tennessee knows that even though MUS may not have won their sixth consecutive state title this past May, Coach Bill Taylor and the Owls still have the premier program in the state and will once again be a favorite to win state next season.

Yet the loss in the state-title match still stings. MUS held a 3-2 lead against MBA going into the two doubles matches after wins by senior Michael Flowers and sophomores Alex Guyton and Bo Ladyman in singles action. But the two Owl doubles teams -- Guyton and Ladyman and Flowers and junior Hays Mabry -- could not get that final point as MBA took the title in dramatic fashion.

MUS responded in individual action as Flowers won the individual state singles title, and the doubles team of Guyton and Ladyman took the doubles state championship to end the season positively.

However, the loss at state should not diminish the accomplishments of this team. The Owls were rarely tested during the regular season as they cruised into the postseason. MUS lost only three team matches all year as they tried to get experience for many of the younger players. They did not lose an individual match until nearly a month into the regular season, and they closed out the regular season with five straight team wins. The Owls also once again claimed first in the prestigious Buckhead Rotary Tournament as they defeated powerful teams St. Pius X, Harrison, and Walton to defend their title. These matches prepared them for the postseason.

MUS looked primed to defend their state title in the regional tournament. The Owls easily won the individual singles and doubles titles, and they claimed the team title with 5-0 victories over both ECS and CBHS. Then they defeated Battle Ground Academy in the state quarterfinals, 4-0, to advance. In the semifinals Chattanooga McCallie offered little resistance as the Owls defeated them 4-1 to head into the finals against MBA, whom they had seen in the finals the previous three years.

Coach Taylor loses only two seniors from this year's team as Ben Alexander and Flowers provided excellent leadership. Other members of the tennis team included juniors Justin Foreman, Alex Gates, and Mabry, sophomores Ben Bleustein, Weller Drennon, Andrew Dudas, Ronny Khuri, Michael McCulloch, Scott McLeod, Worth Morgan, Guyton, and Ladyman, and freshmen Zach Glover, Spencer Heflin, and Mike Montesi. Finally, two eighth graders who played large roles on this team and contributed greatly were William Lang and Jordan Smith.

Though the loss at state may have disappointed the team and its followers, it should re-ignite the drive and hunger to start another streak.