Sports

Serving for a title

• In just its third year of existence, the Baconton Charter School’s boys tennis team is the first charter school squad to reach the GHSA Class A boys semifinals, and today, it will try to become the first public school in the history of Georgia prep sports to win the Class A state title.

Scott Chancey

Debbie Murphy and Cindy Anglin simply wanted to chronicle Baconton Charter School’s boys tennis team when they started writing articles — sending them to anyone and everyone for their reading pleasure — about the squad’s success earlier this season.

Little did they know what a masterpiece they had in the works.

After a simple beginning and meteoric rise in a small Southwest Georgia town, the Blazers — in only their third year as a varsity program — are now chasing a dream: winning the school’s first athletic state championship.

Baconton, which won an academic state title earlier this year, defeated Savannah Country Day’s tennis team, 3-2, in the quarterfinals late last week and now faces Athens Academy in today’s 10 a.m. semifinal at Jonesboro’s Clayton International Park. The winner from that match faces the winner between Brookstone and two-time defending champion St. Francis later in the afternoon.

“Right now, writing about it is really exciting,” said Murphy, whose son Will is part of the team’s No. 1 doubles squad. “It’s easy to do when they’re winning.”

The Blazers, however, have done more than just win.

Baconton is the first charter school to reach the Class A boys tennis Final Four and the first public-school boys team to qualify since Metter did in 2003.

Still, no public school has ever won the Class A boys state championship.

And Anglin — whose sons, Bryant and Braden, are the first- and second-seeded singles players, respectively — is just as caught up in the excitement as everyone else.

“Nobody knew we would get to this point,” Cindy said. “It’s really exciting.”

Especially for Blazers’ first-year coach Lynwood Griner.

Griner’s Blazers went undefeated against Class A teams and are 19-2, losing only against Class AAAAA Lowndes and Colquitt County, and won their first region title after being runners-up last year to Clinch County and fourth in the 2006 region tournament.

But that’s just the beginning of a year filled with success.

This season, Baconton defeated Calvary Day in the first round of state (5-0) and Johnson County (4-1) before eliminating Savannah Country Day.

Griner, who is in his first year as the boys coach after working with the middle-school team the past two seasons, felt this kind of reward was eventually going to happen.

“It feels really good,” said Griner, who was a part-time assistant the past two years and works together with girls coach Melissa Carden. “The guys have worked really hard. These guys had not won a state tournament match until this year, so I just have to keep reminding them to not worry and just have fun. They have the attitude they can win. Just go out there and do the best they can.”

In singles, Bryant, the only senior in the starting lineup, is 20-1, while brother Bradenis 17-1 and junior Michael Long is 11-5. In doubles, baseball/cross country standout Tyler Pinson and Will Murphy — both juniors — are a perfect 15-0, while freshmen Matt Hays and Wheeler Briggs are 16-2.

“I don’t think there is a weak part to the team,” Hays said. “We work hard every day and don’t give up when we’re on the court.”

Now that the semifinals have arrived, Bryant admits he is just as caught up in the moment as his mother is.

“It’s unbelievable,” Bryant said. “Everybody at the school has been great — they’re making us feel like we’re the big dogs on campus. I’ve been on the team awhile, and this is where we wanted to be. This would make my day ... it would make my year.”

What brought the team to this point, however, was a long, patient process.

SETTING A FOUNDATION

Camilla’s Eddie Williamson, a former No. 1 singles player at Auburn, has just as much a passion for tennis off the court as well as on it. Putting together an annual professional tournament that has lasted for more than 30 years in Mitchell County, he wanted to see the sport grow in a town that was largely known for success in football and basketball, and most recently the back-to-back Class A state championships by Westwood School in track and field.

When he was on the Georgia Tennis Association’s board seven years ago, he asked Mitchell County commissioners to fund a county-wide tennis program, which the politicians agreed to do. As a result, a program was created and the Mitchell County Tennis Center grew, now having six courts and a new clubhouse that was built this year.

Then enters West Palm Beach, Fla., tennis pro David Buerkle, who got the job as a teaching pro about a year after the Center was opened — and has since become a huge piece to the puzzle that is Baconton’s success.

The hire provided instant rewards when Camilla players such as theAnglins’ sister Brooke won a state title at Westwood under Buerkle’s direction. Then, older sister Brandi was part of a Westwood doubles state title team in 2001.

Eventually, the love for tennis spread to Baconton once the Anglins began attending the charter school.

“As far as coaching, I’m just the guy who takes them to the matches and keeps them calm,” Griner said of Buerkle’s impact. “As far as teaching tennis? I’ve got to give credit to David.”

Buerkle, a conference champion when he played at Belmont Abbey College, earned the Baconton players’ respect from the onset of their lessons.

“Oh my gosh, Mr. David Buerkle is one of the (reasons) we got this far,” Bryant said. “He’s almost taught the whole team.”

Buerkle won’t be able to attend today’s Final Four in Jonesboro, but says he’s proud to see the fruits of the Mitchell County Tennis Association’s labor over the past few years.

“To see them get this far is pretty amazing,” Buerkle said. “We do live in South Georgia and there are not many (tennis) programs like the one we have in Mitchell County. To see them, however, go and beat the teams from bigger cities makes it even more impressive.”

Carden even put things in more perspective.

“In all honesty, if Eddie didn’t (go out and help us get) the facilities, we wouldn’t have David,” she said. “And if we didn’t have David, then we wouldn’t have the team we have today.”

But when handing out credit, one can’t forget Carden.

Carden actually started Baconton’s tennis program four years ago in the form of a junior-varsity team, and originally coached both varsity teams during their first two GHSA seasons. Griner — a former propane delivery truck driver — didn’t take over as head coach until this season after helping out with the team during his spare time the past two. However, when he became the Charter School’s newest math teacher this year, it paved the way him to take over the boys full time and leave the girls to Carden.

The decision has paid dividends, says Long, who feels that Griner is the primary reason the team is so mentally tough, while Buerkle handles the technical side of the players’ games.

“We all work together and he pushes us hard, helping us play better when we get to the matches,” Long said.

And where winning breeds success, it also breeds fans — and its cultivated a Camilla fanbase that is willing to travel anywhere to see their boys play.

“Every match we go to on the road like in Augusta or Atlanta,” Bryant began, “we usually have more fans than the hometown team does.”

DEEP IN TALENT

Every player brings something critical to the lineup. Not only is Bryant the team’s No. 1, he may hold the most intangibles.

“He has really great leadership ability,” Griner said of Bryant, whose only singles loss was against Lowndes. “He’s the only senior. He’s taken this team and made it a point he wants to win state and work with everybody he can to keep them focused. He’s just a great leader out there. He has that attitude every time he goes on the court that he’s the best out there and that he’s going to win. I know he’s going to win. He’s that type of player.”

Younger brother Braden, however, can only improve after having this kind of season as a freshman, says Griner.

“He’s a wonderful player,” the coach said. “In fact, he’d be No. 1 on most teams in the state. He has all the athleticism of his brother but is not quite at that maturity level yet. He has the capacity to come back in the third set and win, so that is crucial for us.”

Long’s strength, meanwhile, is consistency.

“He’s one of those players who never gives up,” Griner said. “He’s a scrapper and he will get to the ball and just when you think, ‘There’s no way he can get to that ball,’ he does. He’s a brick wall out there, he finds a way to win.”

Speaking of winning, Pinson and Murphy have done that pretty well all year.

In fact, they have no idea heading into today’s Class A Final Four what it even means to lose, having posted a 15-0 record.

Griner said that Pinson, a star pitcher for the Blazers’ baseball team — which will be without his services for their opening-round state playoff game today because of his involvement in tennis — and Murphy seem to communicate with each other on the court as good as any others.

“Tyler gives it all he has,” Griner said. “He’s probably not as natural a tennis player as everybody else but he finds a way (to win) all the time.

And Will played No. 2 singles last year, but because of talent we moved him over and he never complained. He just works hard and is even at practice before I am.”

Murphy calls he and Pinson the “dynamic duo,” while the team’s other doubles squad is equally a threat in any match they’re in.

According to Griner, Hays and Briggs may be the most important part of the team because a common shortcoming of high school tennis programs is depth in doubles.

“They would be No. 1 on most other teams,” Griner said. “They have beaten most other teams’ No. 1s. Matthew is a hard worker and gets out and fights hard. He’s disappointed when he doesn’t play his best. And Wheeler also is a hard worker. You don’t have to tell those two guys anything. They just go out there to win.”

THE STORYTELLERS

Debbie Murphy normally works as a speech pathologist, and Cindy Anglin teaches the third grade at Pelham Elementary. Wanting to not only keep a scrapbook of their sons’ matches but also bring publicity to the team, they began their hobby.

Fortunately for them, when they have trouble writing a story, help is never far away.

“The (boys) help us describe the terms we’re looking for and how to write about something,” Debbie Murphy laughed.

And Briggs thinks the dual Team Moms are both doing a heck of a job.

“I think they’re good stories so far,” he said. “It lets people know how we’re doing. Nobody hardly hears about tennis anymore.”

But it’s more than that.

The stories not only make for excellent scrapbook material while helping the public realize how much the program has improved, it also motivates the players.

Besides, who wants bad press from their mothers?

“They make sure they don’t miss any detail from the matches,” said Bryant, who added he never remembers seeing his mother write very often before taking on the job as tennis-team reporter. “It makes us feel really good to see stories about us ... Baconton is a story that goes untold.”

QUESTION MARKS APLENTY

The obvious concern heading into today’s Final Four is how well Baconton will handle the pressure that comeswith a first-time state semifinals appearance. And if a player becomes rattled during the match, momentum would quickly shift toward the other side.

Keeping today as normal as possible is what will be the key to the Blazers’ success, says Griner.

“Some of the younger players got nervous against Savannah Country Day,” Bryantsaid. “(Our coaches tell us to) just take it match by match, but (at this point) — it’s kinda hard.”

Buerkle — who says he wants to hope for the best — is the first to admit, he doesn’t know what to expect, either.

“I’m not very familiar with the competition they have to deal with,” he said. “They’re in unchartered waters. I don’t doubt they can win, though. I certainly believe in them. They’ve accomplished so much already that whatever they do from here just makes things even better.”

Griner, however, makes no secret about the fact he feels his team is a championship contender.

“Most teams are not as deep as we are,” Griner said. “Any of our guys can win at any given time.”

WHAT IF?

By day’s end, the Blazers could be talking about what size championship rings to get fitted for.

While Baconton continues to build its athletic programs — it will begin playing football this fall — a state championship would thrill more folks in Camilla than just the tennis players.

“A state championship would put Baconton on the map,” Griner said. “When you say Baconton, they say, ‘Where is that at?’ They have it in their hearts and have been really working hard to get to that next level. The Final Four is great, but they think they can win here, too.”

The win would also be further validation for creating the county’s tennis program.

“It would encourage the county commissioners to continue supporting tennis,” Williamson said.

Buerkle could not agree more.

“It would certainly do that,” Buerkle said. “Obviously, the kids are improving their tennis. But before we had this, we had the annual pro tournament. That’s what brought tennis here in the first place — it sparked an interest for tennis in the county.”

So whether or not Baconton comes home with the state title today, one thing is for sure: Debbie Murphy and Cindy Anglin will have another story to write.

They just hope it can include Baconton Charter winning its first state athletic championship.

“We really haven’t practiced (what we’ll say) yet,” Debbie said. “We may practice it (later), but it’s definitely something we look forward to writing.”

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