Curtis Coleman CFNN Tennis Reporter

Monday was the Cape Fear Women’s Tennis Team’s senior night. Seniors Paige Cameron, Arianna Darden, and Kensey Thurmond were celebrated for their excellence in leadership and sportsmanship as captains. The team came out victorious against Pine Forest 7-2 over all. 

In singles, seniors Paige Cameron and Kensey Thurmond both displayed tremendous athletic ability, winning their matches 6-1 6-1 and 6-0 6-0 respectively. 

Juniors Caroline Averitte and Daija Rucker also made outstanding plays against their opponents, both winning at 6-1 6-1 and 6-3 6-0 respectively. 

Finally, on court six for singles, sophomore Madisyn Hall made quick work of her match, winning it 6-0 4-2.

In doubles, Daija Rucker and Madisyn Hall teamed up on court two, winning their match 8-1. Senior Arianna Darden teamed up with sophomore Josephine Lahr to win their match on court three 8-1 as well.

For the team, winning their last conference game and getting a solid win for the well-respected seniors means a lot to them.

“Senior night is always fun, but it’s really hard and sad that it [the season] is almost to an end,” said Kensey Thurmond.  

For Arianna Darden, senior night was more of a surreal experience, she feels as if this isn’t the end but more of a great beginning. 

“Senior night this year just makes me think of the senior nights from previous years, I wonder if they felt like me,” said Darden.

In Paige Cameron’s eyes, senior night hasn’t really hit her yet, but she graciously appreciated the support from the stands on Monday night.

“I couldn’t be more happy with the way the night went,” said Cameron.

Paige Cameron and Kensey Thurmond also expanded on what improvements they saw from last time playing Pine Forest.

“I knew to move her around and keep the point going so my opponent could make an unforced error before me,” said Cameron.

Kensey Thurmond changed her game up and in order to adapt to her opponent.

“I tried to take more risky shots and get out of my comfort zone,” said Thurmond.

Arianna Darden pointed out how proud she is of the team. 

“The team has improved so much, Caroline, Daija, and Paige came back dominating the girls they went to tiebreakers with last time,” said Darden.

As the regular season ends, so does Darden’s high school tennis career. 

“ I played my last match yesterday of high school tennis and I know my future experiences will never be the same, I will truly miss the team dynamic,” said Darden.

However, everyone on the team is preparing themselves for conference games to start, the first of which will be this coming Thursday. Whether preparing to play, or preparing to cheer their teammates to victory, the Cape Fear Women’s Tennis Team is ready for anything that conference will throw at them.