Girls’ Tennis

Section IV State Qualifier

BINGHAMTON – Norwich sophomores Bryn Loomis and Sophie Stewart had two match points to win the Section IV doubles state qualifier Saturday at the Binghamton Tennis Center.

Horseheads’ Abby Braiman and Anna Wicks staved off those match points, and rallied for a 6-1, 5-7, 7-6 (7-5) victory.

The Horseheads team earns the section’s top seed at the state tennis championships Saturday, Nov. 7 at Manlius, while Loomis and Stewart grab the second seed out of Section IV.

“It’s not like we lost the match,” said Norwich head coach John Stewart. “Those (match points) were probably the best two points played the entire tournament. The other team just made better shots. When you force your opponent to make a better shot, and they win on that, that’s a satisfying point.”

Norwich’s doubles team started slow dropping the first set in decisive fashion, then found themselves down 4-1 in the second set. Norwich won nine of the next 12 games to seemingly wrest control of the match from Braiman and Wicks. “It would have been a great story for us to rally and win,” Stewart said. “The first set, we showed a lot of nerves, but we completely turned it around.”