Carrboro stuns unbeaten, No. 1-ranked Greene Central in opening round
Greene Central head girls’ tennis coach Tim Medlin, left, talks with Kristen Colie during a first-set changeover in a singles match Tuesday afternoon. Rudy Coggins/NeuseNews
SNOW HILL - No. 1 vs. No. 8 in the state.
Sounds like a late-season playoff match in the making, right?
Not this time.
Instead, it was an opening-round battle between two perennial girls' tennis powers - top-ranked Greene Central and underclassmen-led Carrboro on Tuesday afternoon.
The result?
A wild-card entrant in the 32-team field, Carrboro pulled off a stunning 5-4 upset in the N.C. High School Athletic Association 2-A dual-team playoffs.
"You have to eat what Mama put on the table," GC head coach Tim Medlin said before the match.
He may have needed a Tums afterwards.
Unbeaten in regular-season play, the Rams (16-1 overall) dropped a first-round playoff match for the first time since 2015. GC eliminated Carrboro from the postseason in 2011 (East Finals) and 2012 (East Semifinals).
"Carrboro is a heckuva team with a heckuva coach," Medlin said. "He (Jonathan Noyes) put a tough lineup on the court that was tough to overcome. We made a valiant effort, just could not overcome their top two players.
"Their one (Lauran Baddour) and their two (Ella Strickler) ended up winning four of the five points they needed to win. They were able to dominate the court more than we could handle."
GC forged a 3-3 tie in singles on straight-set victories from fourth-seeded Hinson Britt, fifth-seeded Venancia Miller and sixth-seeded Kaylee Hill. Britt did not lose a game, while Miller and Hill each posted a 6-2, 6-2 decision.
The Rams' tandem of Miller and Sid Ramsey triumphed 8-2 at No. 3 doubles, while the Jaguars claimed an 8-1 decision at the No. 2 slot.
Strickler and Javan built a 5-2 lead on the No. 1 doubles court, only to see McKinsey Harper and Kristen Colie rally for a 6-6 tie. Long drawn-out games followed and eventually favored the Carrboro duo, which prevailed 8-6.
"I thought we could overcome [the deficit] at No. 1 and almost did," Medlin said. "It was one heck of a match, came down to the end. A lot of excitement. We are excited about next year."
The Rams return their entire starting lineup.
Carrboro 5, Greene Central 4
Singles: Lauran Baddour (C) d. McKinsey Harper 6-0, 6-1; Ella Strickler (C) d. Kristen Colie 6-0, 6-0; Audrey Javan (C) d. Kaylee Tucker 6-2, 6-3; Hinson Britt (GC) d. Kyleigh Tannela 6-0, 6-0; Venancia Miller (GC) d. Caitlan Cubel 6-2, 6-2; Kaylee Hill (GC) d. Catherine Clark 6-2, 6-2.
Doubles: Strickler-Javan (C) d. Harper-Colie 8-6; Baddour-Tannela (C) d. Britt Tucker 8-1; Miller-Sid Ramsey (GC) d. Cubel-Clark 8-2.
