The Clinton Dark Horses men’s tennis team won its first ever state championship in school history on Saturday, defeating Salisbury High School in a tight 5-4 match at the Burlington Tennis Center.

The Dark Horses won two singles matches in straight sets with No. 2 Alexandre Haran and No. 3 Cooper Brewen each getting wins. Camden Thompson had to come back after losing the first set to win the second set and then the match tiebreaker 10-5 to tie the overall match up at 3-3 going into doubles.

Haran and Brewen won at No. 1 doubles and Salisbury won the No. 2 contest, bringing the match to a sudden death tiebreaker between the duo of Thompson and Peter Darden and their Salisbury opponents in the third doubles match. The duo went on to win the doubles match, 10-5, to celebrate the school’s first-ever state tennis crown.

With the victory, 2A champions Clinton finished the season with a 22-1 overall record. Lukas Jerez won the Sportsmanship Award and Brewen was named MVP for the match.

Head Coach Robert Jones praised his team’s hard work and credited their championship victory with being able to peak at the right time. He said their dedication since the beginning of the year was evident.

“I’m proud of how hard the team has worked from January workouts to winning the championship on Saturday,” Jones said. “We peaked at the right time and our lineup, especially in doubles, against NCSSM and Salisbury could not have been better. I believe the soccer championship experience of Peter and Camden helped them, especially against Salisbury, where they were the deciding court.”

The Clinton Dark Horses tennis team stands for photos after their win on Saturday. Lukas Jerez won the Sportsmanship Award and Cooper Brewen was named MVP.
https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/web1_CHS-Tennis-Team.jpgThe Clinton Dark Horses tennis team stands for photos after their win on Saturday. Lukas Jerez won the Sportsmanship Award and Cooper Brewen was named MVP.
Clinton tennis secures first-ever state title

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Reach Sports Editor Daron Barefoot at [email protected].