COLUMBIA, Md. — Williamsport became the first Washington County public school to win the MPSSAA State Tennis Team Championship on Saturday at Wilde Lake Tennis Club.
Wildcats senior Lauren Toms captured the first girls singles state title in county history, capping off an undefeated season and leading Williamsport to Class 1A team honors, scoring 15 points to lead the Wildcats to a one-point win over eventual runner-up South Carroll.
“This is a big accomplishment,” Williamsport coach Kate Paylor said, “We knew we had a chance and we knew all of our kids would get some points when they got to the semifinals. … It’s something to be excited and proud of, not just for all of Williamsport but for the county as well.”
Toms was the 2022 runner-up in 1A girls singles and placed third last year before earning the crown as the No. 1 seed her final year. On Friday, she defeated Middletown’s Sharon Martin 6-1, 6-2 in the quarterfinals and Fort Hill’s Jobi Breitfeller 6-0, 6-0 in the semifinals. On Saturday, she led Friendly’s Layla Webb 3-0 in the first set before Webb withdrew with an injury.
“It was a very emotional experience. I’d been there three times and I really wanted to win, so when I won, I was shocked at first and a little overwhelmed,” Toms said. “Honestly, I’m very proud. … It means a lot, especially since I ended up not pursuing tennis and pursuing soccer at a younger age. I’m glad I was able to come back to high school and play tennis and make my mark and achieve something like this.”
The Toms finished 22-0 this season and were 46-1 over their final two years. She will play soccer at the Naval Academy in the fall.
“It was a relief for her,” Paylor said. “My biggest focus today was her winning her singles match. It was a big accomplishment for her to win and she was very happy. It was an even sweeter feeling for her to have a team win because her teammates were with her.”
“The last two years at the USA tournament it’s been pretty lonely. The two years before there were a lot of teams there but I was the only coach. It was encouraging to have my teammates encourage me and I think that’s what made our team stand out from the others this weekend and led to our victory,” Toms admitted.
Boonboro junior Hunter Liao has won three straight Class 1A championships, becoming just the third player in history to win three MPSSAA boys singles state titles. On Friday, Liao defeated St. Michael’s Tom Weller 6-0, 6-0 in the quarterfinals and Harford Tech’s Brandon Nguyen 6-0, 6-0 in the semifinals. On Saturday, he defeated Liberty’s Nikhil Andavarapu 6-1, 6-0 in the finals.
Liao is 14-0 in singles matches this year and has a 51-0 record in high school without dropping a set.
“He’s fun to watch,” Warriors coach Titus Muniz said. “The big thing is that some parents and coaches have complimented him on the way he carries himself. He treats people with respect, and he was a dominant player in high school. But he doesn’t do anything flashy, and that speaks to his character. It speaks to not just his tennis talent, but his humility and his willingness to showcase the best of tennis.”
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Williamsport’s mixed doubles team of Elizabeth Warren and Aiden Nye took second place in 1A, while the Wildcats’ boys doubles team of Mason Bauer and Luke Miller took third place.
“I’ve never had this many guys compete in a state tournament before, but seeing how they competed, I knew we had a chance to win it not just as individuals but as a team,” Paylor said. “I knew there was more going on here than just the individual competition. I didn’t expect (a state team championship) at the beginning of the season, but I’m very proud of our team in that regard.”
Warren and Nye beat St. Michael’s Tess Weller and Shawn Klein 6-3, 6-2 in the 1A mixed doubles quarterfinals on Friday, then beat Fallston’s Megan Perez and Jesse Killan 6-4, 6-3 in the semifinals before losing a closely fought match to South Carroll’s Sydney Mossman and Michael Mooney 7-6 (4), 7-5 in Saturday’s final.
Bauer and Miller beat Washington’s Clinton Lankford and James Jimenez 6-1, 6-3 in the 1A boys doubles quarterfinals but lost 6-3, 6-2 to Liberty’s Arjun Mistry and Hayden Spieth in the semifinals on Friday. In the third-place match on Saturday, Bauer and Miller defeated Southern Garrett’s Ben Nazerrod and Shane Sisler 6-1, 6-4.
South Hagerstown’s Atlee Hilliard was the runner-up in Class 3A girls singles. On Friday, Hilliard defeated Dulaney’s Campbell Andrelotte 6-2, 6-3 in the quarterfinals and Poly’s Maria Chen 6-3, 6-1 in the semifinals. She lost 6-1, 6-3 to Reservoir’s Kirsten Tambe in the finals on Saturday. Hilliard finished the season with a 14-4 record in singles.
Boonboro’s girls doubles team of Larissa Blair and Saumya Pada took third place in 1A after beating North Dorchester’s Maddie Tobat and Jules Tobat 6-3, 4-6, 10-5 in the quarterfinals on Friday, before losing 6-0, 6-1 to South Carroll’s Caroline Aliftiras and Audrey Lillycropp in the semifinals and beating Alleghany’s Maya Hare and Danica Knight 6-3, 6-0 in the third-place match on Saturday.
Blair teamed with then-fourth-grader Cami Rowe to win the state girls doubles title last year.
“They did really well,” Muniz said. “It was impressive to see Larissa come back with a new partner and compete in the state tournament. Saumya had been playing singles until a few weeks before tournament season, but realized her best chance of success in the postseason was to play doubles. They formed some good partnerships and were fun to watch.”
