KHSAA Tennis state championships started this morning at two sites
Garza, Davis and the Earlywine brothers representing Bourbon County
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LEXINGTON, KY – The 2023 KHSAA Tennis State Championships presented by UK HealthCare returned to the Lexington area this morning, with first serve started at 8 a.m. ET and competition running throughout the morning, afternoon, and evening.
The Bourbon County Colonels and Lady Colonels are representing their school this week at the state tennis tournament with single players freshman Asyha Garza and sophomore Case Davis taking to the courts at 8am. Doubles partners Luke and Noah Earlywine will hit the courts at 11am this morning and if they win, they will play again this afternoon at 1:30.
The first and second rounds of the girls’ competition will take place at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex on the campus of the University of Kentucky in Lexington, while the boys’ competition will take place solely at Top Seed Tennis Club in Nicholasville.
Following the first day of play, all remaining matches over the next two days will be played at Top Seed Tennis Club. Boys’ and girls’ singles semifinals will start Thursday at 8 a.m., followed by doubles semifinals at 10 a.m. Championship matches will be decided at 1 p.m.
Team champions will be determined through an accumulation of points throughout the tournaments, with each singles player and doubles team receiving one point for each match victory.
Garza wins regional singles title
Aysha Garza, a Bourbon County High School freshman, had a season that will never be forgotten. Garza went undefeated in the region in singles during 2023. That effort led her to being the number one seed in the 10th Region Tennis Tournament. Aysha held up to the hype, earning her first singles title.
In the finals, Garza wasted no time, as she dismissed Presley Grant 6-3, 6-0 to take the title. This was the first girl’s singles title for BCHS since 2000.
Case Davis finishes as singles runner-up
Sophomore Case Davis was the 2 seed in the regional tournament this season. After falling in the quarterfinals last spring to eventual champion Dason Herrington, Davis had something to prove in 2023.
In the semi-finals, Davis defeated Noah Collins from Campbell County 6-4, 6-4, advancing to the championship match. In the finals, Davis would play defending three-time region champion Dason Herrington from Harrison County. The BCHS sophomore played a great match, however, Herrington, a Thomas More signee, was able to pull out the victory 6-1, 6-3.
Luke and Noah Earlywine finish as doubles runner-up
After finishing the season 15-1, brothers Luke and Noah Earlywine entered the regional tournament as the 1 seed. Their lone loss on the season was to the state’s 5th ranked doubles team from Villa Madonna.
In the quarterfinals, the brothers played Thompson and Covington from Montgomery County, winning 6-0, 6-1. This led to a re-match of last year’s regional championship, where they would face Combs and Combs out of Campbell County. The Earlywine’s played tremendously, dispatching the Camels 6-2, 6-0.
In the finals, the team from BCHS would take on Clay Turley and Tennyson Prater from GRC. Prater has been known as one of the better singles players in the region for several years, deciding mid-season this year to make the jump to doubles.
The Earlywine’s stayed hot early, winning the first set 6-0. The team from GRC stormed back and won the second set 6-3. This sent the match to a super tie-break. The tie-break went back and forth with GRC pulling it out 10-8.
BCHS Boys’ tennis are 10th Region Champions
The team champions for each region in tennis are crowned using a point system that gives teams points for each win. The BCHS boys’ team, under the direction of Taylor Osborne, were crowned the Region Champion for the second time in three years.
The Lady Colonels had a great showing as well, finishing as runner-up in the region.
