FRANKLIN
The Western Tidewater Ladies 6.5 Combo Tennis Team finished third, with an overall team record of 2-2 during the Regional Tournament at the Virginia Beach Tennis and Country Club over the weekend.

The Franklin-based team, called “Baby Got Backhand,” defeated Norfolk 2-1 on Friday morning and Richmond-West on Saturday 2-1, but lost to Richmond-Moorefield 0-3 on Friday afternoon and to Shenandoah 1-2 on Sunday, resulting in Richmond-Moorefield being declared the state champions.

The team had won the local league in Franklin, earning them a spot in the Regional Tournament, which drew local-league-winning teams from all over Virginia to compete for the state champion title.

The Western Tidewater doubles teams with the best record for the tournament were Jen Whitley and Tina Evans with three wins and one loss; and Crystal Butler and Judy Luter with two wins and two losses. There were numerous third-set tiebreakers, so all were very close. Kathy Mason, Diann Cooper and Ashley Burns also played well in their doubles matches

Ken Cussick, Franklin’s resident tennis pro, served as the team’s coach.