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Tuesday, March 19, 2024
March 19, 2024

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Ari Haygood, Lexi Frost are the perfect match to win doubles title at 3A district tennis

No. 5 seed Kamaile Correa of Kelso captures 3A district singles title

By , Columbian Assistant Sports Editor
Published:
4 Photos
Mountain View's Ari Haygood (left) and Lexi Frost celebrate after winning the girls doubles final at the 3A district tennis tournament at Club Green Meadows on Saturday, May 14, 2022.
Mountain View's Ari Haygood (left) and Lexi Frost celebrate after winning the girls doubles final at the 3A district tennis tournament at Club Green Meadows on Saturday, May 14, 2022. (Tim Martinez/The Columbian) Photo Gallery

Ari Haygood and Lexi Frost are about as different as two tennis teammates can be.

Haygood is a senior; Frost is a freshman.

Haygood plays volleyball in the fall; Frost plays soccer.

Haygood is a talker; Frost is more reserved.

“I’ve been playing tennis for four years,” Haygood said.

“I’ve been playing four months,” Frost followed.

But the Mountain View duo share one thing in common Saturday at Club Green Meadows – a district championship.

Haygood and Frost, the No. 3 seed, outlasted teammates and top-seeded Emma Av and Brynn Desantis 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 to capture the 3A district doubles title.

“I think that was the longest match I’ve played in four years,” Haygood said.

The differences between Haygood and Frost on the court actually may have been their greatest asset.

“We didn’t start the season as doubles partners,” Haygood said. “We got switched together halfway through the season. And it worked really well. I like playing at the net a lot, and Lexi is really good at the baseline. … It just really clicked together.”

Haygood and Frost reached the finals by knocking off the No. 2 seed Macy Grafton and Maggie Weddell of Kelso 6-1, 6-2 in semifinals earlier Saturday.

The title match got off to a good start for Haygood and Frost, as they took a 4-1 lead.

But then Av and Desantis won the next five games to take the first set, which may have got Haygood and Frost thinking their chance to win may have slipped away.

“To be honest, I don’t think; I just play,” Haygood said. “I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. … I play volleyball. That’s sort of my main sport. And I always know it’s the next point that matters. So I do my best not to focus on the points of the past.”

And having a teammate who is used to running around soccer fields was big help, especially as the match stretched into the third set.

“I have a lot of endurance from soccer, so it’s easier for me to stay into it and not get super-duper tired,” Frost said. “In soccer, I’ve been down in the second half and we’ve come back to score in the last two minutes of the game to win. So I sort of had that mentality. We can come back and win this.”

The singles bracket had a bigger upset take the district title as No. 5 seed Kamaile Correa beat top-seeded Betty To of Evergreen 7-6, 6-2 in the semifinals, then beat No. 2 seed Susan Hong of Mountain View 6-2, 6-1 in the final.

Over 4A girls tennis district tournament at the Vancouver Tennis Center, it was dominated by Camas and the Kerker sisters in particular.

Freshman Hailey Kerker swept past teammate Emma Loucks, a senior, 6-0, 6-0 to win the singles title.

In doubles, freshman Taryn Kerker and senior Jace Moriki beat Union’s Ina Ding and Lana Saepraseuth for the title 6-2, 6-3.

Mountain View's Susan Hong can't reach a lob during the girls singles final at the 3A district tennis tournament at Club Green Meadows on Saturday, May 14, 2022.
Mountain View's Susan Hong can't reach a lob during the girls singles final at the 3A district tennis tournament at Club Green Meadows on Saturday, May 14, 2022. (Tim Martinez/The Columbian) Photo
Mountain View's Ari Haygood returns a shot during the girls doubles final at the 3A district tennis tournament at Club Green Meadows on Saturday, May 14, 2022.
Mountain View's Ari Haygood returns a shot during the girls doubles final at the 3A district tennis tournament at Club Green Meadows on Saturday, May 14, 2022. (Tim Martinez/The Columbian) Photo
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