CFNN Reporter Sophia Bullard

Addiction is often considered a problem in our society. People get hooked on any number of things. Our girls tennis team is different. There is no problem with their addiction. These girls are addicted to championships.

The Cape Fear Girls Tennis Team took home their fourth consecutive conference title on Tuesday against Seventy-First and Douglas Byrd High Schools. The girls made quick work of the Falcons winning 9-0. The girls were scheduled to take on Douglas Bryd but due to a conflict Byrd was not able to make it and the Colts won by forfeit. 

Tuesday’s match featured Seventy First. The girls pulled out a fantastic win at their tournament. It was a different match, on court one, Anna Piland played singles winning both sets with a 6-0, 6-0. The second singles player was Brianna Keen, our fourth court. She also won both sets 6-0, 6-0. On first court doubles, Shea Beineik and Andi Brinker played, winning 6-0, 6-0. Second court doubles, Dani Fick and Ansley Thomas played and won 6-1, 6-0. The girls played hard and well and made us proud! 

“We played really well overall, and I think it helped prepare us not only for our next match against Terry, but for regionals as well. I think the main thing we should work on to be more unbeatable is our aggression and our confidence.” Said Thomas.

On Thursday, they played their biggest rival: the Terry Sanford Bulldogs.This was an interesting week for the athletes, both victorious and devastating. This was the girls’ last match before traveling to regionals, and we ended on a not-so-expected note.

The girls went to Terry Sanford and played an extremely long, difficult match. The battle of the blues was a true battle. The girls only won singles on two courts. Court one player Anna Piland lost her first set with a 2-6 but came back the second set and turned the tables, winning 6-2. She then won her ten point tie break 10-8in a close set. Piland and Shea Bienek partnered up in doubles but came up short, losing with a 5-8, but the pair didn’t make it easy for the Dogs.

“To start off with singles, Annie is always a tough opponent so I knew I had to bring my best to the court. It was a big challenge, recently coming back from injury but I was able to up my game in the second set to win in tiebreak,” said Piland after the match. “For doubles, we played really well considering Shea was cramping, but she did great powering through. And as we train more together working on doubles, I think we will be a very hard doubles team to beat.”  

The Colts other singles champion, Bri Keen, won her match 6-1, 6-3, on court four. She’s been working hard on her speed and her technique at practice, and it’s paying off. Keen partnered up with senior Ansley Thomas in third court doubles. Although they put up a difficult fight, they played competitively and consistently, but the girls ultimately went down 5-8. 

“I think the main thing we should be working on before regionals, specifically, is volleys. There were a lot of unforced errors that can be fixed with a little bit of practice and attention brought to them,” said Keen. “I’m confident that even though we didn’t do as good as we had hoped against the Bulldogs, we will do really well in the playoffs.” 

Even though our champs dropped their second match of the season, it was important to the Lady Colts. Terry Sanford brought a great challenge for them, and they were shown the things they need to fix in order to win a state title, hopefully for the THIRD YEAR IN A ROW! Thank you for all your support for Cape Fear’s Women’s Tennis Team, and remember to stay classy, Colts.