By Luke Nadkarni/Scrimmageplay.com Contributor
Albemarle boys tennis team has been doling out dominant wins all season long. On Tuesday afternoon in the group AAA state quarterfinals, however, the Patriots found themselves in an unfamiliar position — on the wrong end of one of those dominant wins.
Visiting Langley blanked the Patriots 5-0. The Saxons finished as the AAA state runner-up last season. Langley was the Northern Region runners-up this year, but still dominated Northwest Region champion Albemarle from start to finish.
“We knew that it was going to be a tough match, and it was,” Albemarle coach Chip Grobmyer said. [But we] didn’t back down, so I was proud.
James Schenk started things off for Langley by defeating Albemarle’s Charlie Shepherd 6-2, 6-0 at No. 4 singles. The bagels in the final set became a recurring theme for the Patriots, as No. 6 Joey Michel and No. 5 David Grbic fell 6-0, 6-0 and 6-2, 6-0 to Chase Lewis and Joe La Furia, respectively. Kevin Shen was next off the court for the Saxons with a 6-1, 6-0 drubbing of Boris Yang at No. 2, and Langley sealed the match minutes later when Brandon Lee downed Doug Corbett at No. 1, giving his team the necessary five wins to advance.
Albemarle No. 3 Jake Brooks was still on court when the match was decided, locked in a second-set duel with Hammy Abuhanda. Abuhanda led 6-1, 3-2 when his team clinched the match. Brooks has not officially lost a singles match for two straight seasons.
Despite the loss, Grobmyer saw the season as an overall success.
“We have a lot to be proud of this year, a lot of great accomplishments,” Grobmyer said. “I’m just extremely proud of our guys.”
Among those accomplishments are an undefeated regular season, a district championship, and a regional championship.
As a team, Albemarle’s season comes to an end with a 23-1 record. However, Corbett and Brooks have at least one more match to play, as they will compete in the AAA state doubles tournament in Fairfax on June 6th. They will meet the representatives from Princess Anne High School of the Eastern Region.
Langley 5, Albemarle 0
Singles
Lee d. Corbett 6-1, 6-0
Shen d. Yang 6-1, 6-0
Abuhanda vs. Brooks 6-1, 3-2 DNF
Schenck d. Shepherd 6-2, 6-0
La Furia d. Grbic 6-2, 6-0
Lewis d. Michel 6-0, 6-0
