For the four Baylor tennis seniors most every good thing comes in fours.
Samantha Caswell, Harper Caswell, McCall Morgan and Maggie Crumbliss have led the Red Raiders to four straight Rotary team titles and now with yesterday's 6-1 win against long-time rival GPS, four straight D-II Mdidle/East Region crowns. The last four-peat on their list of goals is a fourth straight TSSAA D-II AA team championship at Spring Fling in two weeks.
Baylor had beaten the Bruisers 7-0 in mid-April and yesterday's 6-1 score seemed a similar result but it wasn't.
"GPS came out focused today (Tuesday) and played smart doubles and won the team point," said Baylor girls coach Dustin Kane.
"They are a well coached, tough team and we very well could play them again at Spring Fling."
Baylor won No.3 doubles 8-0 (Drew Hawkins-Grace Petty) and led at Nos.1 and 2, 4-1, but GPS battled back to win both for the team point.
The Bruisers' Maddox Bandy-Danielle Simms made it 1-1 with their 8-6 victory at No.2 as all eyes turned to the No.1 court.
Michelle Fleenor-Jennie McBrayer then defeated Samantha Caswell-McCall Morgan, 9-8 (6-3) to lead 1-0 going into singles.
Baylor won first sets in five of the six singles matches and went on to win all six matches.
"Even though we didn't win any of the singles, we went three sets in two of the them and played better than we did in April," said GPS coach Sue Bartlett.
"We are getting better," said Bartlett with a smile who recently helped Great Britain to a world team silver medal at the ITF Senior World Championships in Boca Raton, Fla.
The two Chattanooga teams are odds on favorite to play one more time in two weeks for the state championship.
Baylor has now won 11 straight matches against GPS, since losing to the Bruisers in the 2010 state finals.
Baylor 6, GPS 1
Doubles:
Michelle Fleenor-Jennie McBrayer (GPS ) def. Samantha Caswell-McCall Morgan, 9-8 (3)
Maddox Bandy-Danielle Simms (GPS) def. Harper Caswell-Maggie Crumbliss, 8-6
Grace Petty-Drew Hawkins (B) def. Analisa Stratienko-Virginia Hammond, 8-0
Singles:
Samantha Caswell (B) def. Michelle Fleenor 6-1, 6-1
Harper Caswell (B) def. Jenne McBrayer 6-0, 6-2
Maggie Crumbliss (B) def. Maddox Bandy 6-1, 3-6, 6-2
McCall Morgan (B) def. Danielle Simms 6-2, 6-2
Drew Hawkins (B) def. Annalisa Stratienko, 6-0, 6-0
Ashton Jenne (B) def. Virginia Hammond 6-7, 6-3, 10-7
Records: Baylor (12-1, 3-0), GPS (9-4, 1-1)