Republic’s boys tennis team fell to Joplin 5-1 in the district championship Thursday at Cooper Tennis Complex in Springfield. Despite the lopsided final score, the match was much closer than the numbers suggest.
Republic led in all three doubles matches early, but Joplin rallied to win two of them, setting the tone for the rest of the day. An injury to senior Gavin Collyott in singles play further hampered the Tigers’ comeback hopes.
In No. 1 doubles, Lucas Riffe and Collyott built an early 3-2 lead before Joplin turned the tide. The Republic duo fought back to make it 5-6, but ultimately fell 5-8.
Andrew McCord and Nathan Henry looked in control with a 6-3 advantage in No. 2 doubles before Joplin mounted a comeback. The Eagles won six of the final seven games to claim a 9-7 victory.
Republic secured its lone point in No. 3 doubles, where Cooper Choate and Nico Lugli maintained their early momentum. After building a 5-4 lead, they pushed ahead to 8-5, with Lugli sealing the match with a decisive smash.
“I thought we played aggressively, and we were doing the right things, and I thought we were setting a good tone, and we just couldn’t quite finish,” said coach David Smashey. “That’s a good team, and sometimes you lose because you’re not very good, and sometimes you lose because the other team’s just a little bit better.”
Smashey emphasized how competitive the match truly was despite the final score.
“We had chances, and we didn’t cash them in. I think 5-1 probably looks like a blowout, but on the court, probably five or six points made the difference,” he said.
The loss ended what Smashey described as an exceptional season for Republic tennis.
“I thought it’s as good of a boys team as I’ve ever seen at Republic,” Smashey said. “I’m not sure we were at the beginning of the season, but by the middle of the season, we beat Catholic, we competed well against Bolivar, we beat Branson, and all of a sudden, we were a different team, and our kids started having confidence in each other and themselves, and we were pretty good by the end, just not quite good enough.”
