The OAA Division II tournament on Sept. 28 was supposed to be winner take all this year ? but after Clarkston and West Bloomfield tied with 13 points a piece the two schools will share the crown for the second year in a row.
The Wolves and Lakers entered the league tournament with identical 5-0-1 records within the division, having tied one another 4-4 on Sept. 8.
‘I don’t know how all those points add up to a tie but I guess they do,? said Clarkston Coach Kyleen Cunningham.
At the league tournament Sophomore No.2 single Alyssa Lucas, junior No. 3 single Darylann Trout and freshmen No. 4 single Nicole Janek all won their flights. Senior No.1 single Stephanie Parkison finished in third place.
Coming into the league tourney Cunningham knew that her talented singles could only carry the Wolves so far and the team would only go as far as their doubles carried them.
?(The doubles) played awesome. (Kelli McKay and Kayla Sweeney) came through huge for us. They really stepped up,? said Cunningham.
McKay and Sweeney won the No. 3 doubles flight at the league tourney. No.2 doubles tandem Kate Cooley and Alyssa Crawford helped Clarkston a great deal as well with a second place finish.
With regionals around the corner on Oct. 7 in Novi, Cunningham’s charges got some state tournament level competition at the Holly Invitational on Oct. 1
Lucas, Trout and Janek all finished in second place to players from the defending state champion Ann Arbor Huron team. For Janek and Trout the losses were the first of the season. Cunningham felt all three players would still get number one seeds at the regional tournament though.
Going into the regionals Cunningham has her team focused on making the State tournament of the second year in a row.
‘We just need them to get points. We want to finish in first or second, but when it comes down to it we need our 18 points,? said Cunningham.
The first and second place finishers at regionals automatically advance to the state tournament, but teams with 18 or more points are also invited, such was the case for Clarkston last year.
Cunningham feels the Wolves biggest competitors for the regional crown will be West Bloomfield, Farmington Hills Mercy and Novi.
While technically possible for all four teams to qualify for states, it is highly improbable.