It was a great Thursday afternoon for the Lady Bearcats and Bearcats tennis team, as they both brought home the region championship.

It has been several years since both teams won region, but Thursday’s game had decisive wins and powerful plays from the boys and girls.

In order to win the tournament, the team had to win three of five matches for every round.

Boys played first, with number one singles player, Mark Loeffler winning 6-1, 6-0. Number two singles, Robert Shockley played next and brought home a double bagel win of 6-0, 6-0. With one match left to win, number three singles player, Dalton Savage clutched the final singles game of round one with a win of 6-1, 6-3.

Following the boys win, the girls were on fire. Number one singles player, Sydnee Burke shutout her Veterans opponent with a win of 6-0, 6-0. Number two singles player, Mikey Harrell continued the dominant play with a 6-0, 6-0 win of her own. Gracie Surratt ended the girls round one game with a win of 6-2, 6-1. The team was thrilled and could not wait to move onto Round 2.

Burke continued to play in round 2, where she won again 6-1, 6-0. Harrell also played again in round 2, where she dominated once again with a 6-0, 6-0 score. Surratt followed the winning streak, winning 6-0, 6-2. Doubles team, Bree Powell and Jade Stacey finalized the region win with a score of 6-1, 6-0, giving them the title.

Loeffler was the first win of round two for the boys. He didn’t allow his opponent to score a single point and took home a victory of 6-0, 6-0. His win was followed up by Shockley, who won 6-1, 6-0. Savage had a dominant first game of 6-0 and a close follow up match of 3-2. The final win of the day came from doubles team, Hudson Barber and Cole Buchanan. The team finished the day with a blowout 6-0, 6-0.

Coach Amy Thomas was proud of both teams.

“We came out strong every time on the court,” she said. “It was a total team effort and we are just really excited.”

Because both teams were seeded first and won the region championship, they will host the first round of the state at Bainbridge High School. Thomas was unsure of who they would play yet.