From Coach Bob Long:
   The Chillicothe Hornet Tennis sectional qualifiers traveled to Cameron on Monday, May 19 to face the district 15 first and second place finishers. Pembroke Hill won all four sectional invitations from their district and won all four state invitations, three at the hands of Chillicothe. Gabe Poling, 20-1, finished his junior season with a tough loss 6-2, 2-6, 2-6 to Cormac Chester of Pembroke. Gabe won the first set, but early in the second set Chester found his range in the windy conditions and never looked back. Nate McKiddy and Garrett Peterson were defeated 2-6, 2-6 to the Pembroke team of Noah Bortnik and Josh Bortnik. Nathan Sims played one of the best players in the state, March Zheng, the number one player on Pembroke's solid team. Nathan's freshmen run came to an end, losing 0-6, 0-6.
     Losses don't discount the successes. It was disappointing, especially for Gabe, but the Hornet's gained experience. In a season with five new varsity players, the team had wins over Maryville, Savannah and Trenton. Gabe Poling dominated singles play in the conference, highlighted with a conference tournament win. Garrett Peterson and Nate McKiddy found themselves in the conversation as best doubles team in the conference by winning the district title. Nathan Sims will be a Hornet for three more years and has sectional qualifier already on his resume. We wish our lone senior Quinten Lewis farewell and look forward to the advancement of underclassmen: Brandon Lamp, Isaiah Barron, Lane Bonderer, Steen Anthony, Cody Evans, Jacob Keller and the remainder of the junior varsity.