Depth, chemistry key A.C. Flora tennis to another state title appearance

One of the strength’s of the A.C. Flora boys tennis team is its depth, and coach Amy Martin hopes that comes in handy in Saturday’s Class 3A championship match against Hanahan.

The Falcons are the defending state champions, and making their third straight championship appearance at the Cayce Tennis Center. Hilton Head defeated A.C. Flora in 2014, but the Falcons defeated the Seahawks last season.

“I know Hanahan has a good one and two player, and traditionally most teams really have good one and twos,” Martin said. “But it is the depth of this program to get it where it is today and in seasons past.

“That is the great thing about high school tennis. When one or two have a hiccup, you can still pull out the W.”

That depth was a big factor during Wednesday’s 4-2 Upper State championship match against Chapin. The Falcons lost in No. 1 and No. 3 singles, but Alex Echols and Griffin Rentz got wins in No. 4 and No. 5 to help pull out the win.

A.C. Flora comes into the championship at 16-2, with their two losses coming to 4A opponents Lexington and Dutch Fork.

“We have been working so hard all year and we have gotten nothing but better,” senior Austin Powell said. “We are looking at proving ourselves one more time.”

Powell is one of three seniors on the roster, and said one of the things he likes most about this team is its chemistry. He said the team eats together most nights and will gather for breakfast, which probably consist of bagels, before Saturday’s championship match.

“This group is so special because they are a great group of friends,” Martin said. “They are school leaders, church leaders, eagle scouts and they love to get together and hang out. You don’t see many teams like that, especially tennis teams, and that is fun to see.”

This story was originally published May 13, 2016 at 8:34 PM with the headline "Depth, chemistry key A.C. Flora tennis to another state title appearance."