Published: May 16, 2008 11:55 pm            

Convincing show

Metcalf moves Ashland boys into first-place tie with Russell

ASHLAND — Sophomore Stephen Metcalf of Ashland turned in a nearly flawless tennis performance Friday night with his team counting on him.

Metcalf reeled off the last 11 games for a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Rose Hill Christian School sixth-grader David Bush in the boys singles final of the 16th Region Tournament.

The other three championship matches are set for today, beginning at 10 a.m. at the Ashland Tennis Center.

Fair skies allowed for Friday’s match to be played outdoors. Metcalf, seeded second, kept his errors to a minimum against Bush, the No. 4 seed and youngest player to reach the boys singles championship.

“I didn’t want to make silly, unforced errors,’’ Metcalf said. “My goal was to keep the ball in play but still be aggressive at the same time.’’

After each player held serve the first time, Metcalf took control and won his first regional singles crown after capturing the doubles title last year with Jeff Nelson.

“Fundamentally, Stephen hits the ball better than anybody in the region,’’ said Ashland coach Eddie Sizemore. “If he gets his nerves under control, like he did today, he is very tough to beat.’’

Bush, who celebrated his 12th birthday Thursday night by knocking off top-seeded Spencer Johnson of East Carter, couldn’t find any chinks in Metcalf’s armor. None of the games in the second set went to deuce.

“David had been hitting his forehand so well,’’ Sizemore said. “We wanted Stephen to do things to keep David from setting up and hitting that forehand. Stephen did a nice job with that.’’

Metcalf said he played better Friday than in his 6-4, 6-3 semifinal win over Russell’s Chase Bates.

“I was more consistent,’’ Metcalf said. “David’s got a huge future ahead of him. He’s going to be a great player. He’s already number one in the state in his age division (12s).’’

Metcalf’s win moved Ashland’s boys — trying to win the regional title for the eighth straight year — into a first-place tie with Russell at 12 points apiece.

“This was a must-win,’’ Metcalf said. “My teammates and lots of friends came out to support me.’’

His coach took notice.

“Stephen is very much a team guy,’’ Sizemore said. “What a crowd we had watching him, so many kids. That’s a compliment to him.’’

Ashland’s Nelson and Greg Geremia, the top-seeded doubles team, will meet Russell brothers Alex and Austin Christie in a match to determine the team title.

The girls’ title is also undecided. Russell has a two-point lead over Boyd County, with the teams meeting in both finals today. Boyd’s Brooke Helms plays Claire Spradlin in singles, while the doubles matchup has top-seeded Tori Powell and Andrea Wise of Russell going against Hannah Cooksey and Holly Jude.

ROCKY STANLEY can be reached at rstanley@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2671.

        

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