Patience pays off with title for Ferris’ Hough
For the majority of Saturday morning and early afternoon, Whitman Hough had to be patient.
He had to battle his way back for a win after losing his first set in his early semifinal match, and then he waited a couple of hours for his championship match to begin – where his patient tennis game took him all the way.
Hough’s steady forehand and even-tempered style took down Hanford’s Jake Knox 6-3, 6-1, as Hough won the No. 1 boys singles championship at the 62nd annual Inland Empire Tournament – a competition that featured more than 500 tennis players from 47 schools.
“That’s really one of his upsides,” Ferris boys tennis coach Brian Sachse said of the Ferris junior. “He’s very even-keeled and when you’re playing these types of players, that’s what you have to be – you have to stay steady.”
An early service break in the first set was all Hough needed to rattle Knox. In the second set, both players held serve, before Hough got his first break to go up 2-1. Hough held twice and broke twice more before winning on a forehand volley pushed deep into the corner.
“I just try to be patient,” Hough said. “His drop shot was good and he mixed it up pretty well – I just hit it to his forehand and tried to blow him off the court.”
In No. 1 girls singles action, fourth-seeded Alexis Filliol (West Valley-Yakima) defeated defending champion Molly Knox of Hanford in three sets, 6-3, 5-7, 7-5. Lewis and Clark’s Elise Otto finished third, defeating Sunnyside’s Vikina Pavlova 6-0 in the first set before Pavlova defaulted because of a back injury.
Mead’s Katrina Schwab, the top seed in the No. 2 girls singles bracket, won her championship match, beating Gonzaga Prep’s Andrea Driscoll 6-2, 6-1. In earlier semifinals, Schwab defeated Jodie Miller of Southridge and Driscoll beat Andrea Berry of Connell to set up the all-Greater Spokane League matchup.
In the girls No. 1 doubles finale, East Valley’s Jessica Casebier and Miranda Brother fell 6-4, 7-5 to Hellgate’s Lauren Crandall and Emily Rolston.
Casebier and Brother, who were unseeded in the tournament, took down the top-seeded Ferris duo of Kelsey McLauchlin and Christina Berg, in an earlier quarterfinal match.
Ferris earned top honors in the No. 2 girls doubles bracket when Kalie Kuntz and Ashley Gardella defeated Mead’s Anika Westre and Sara Hair 6-3, 6-1.
In the even-matched boys No. 2 singles championship, top-seeded Curtis Lan (Hanford) defeated Mt. Spokane’s Nick McMurray, the second seed. Lan won in three sets, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3. Ferris’ Collin Siok beat Jeff Spangler (G-Prep) 6-3, 6-2, for third place.
The Ferris Saxons (118 points) won the team competition, edging defending champion Richland (112). Hanford (110) and Mead (107) finished third and fourth, respectively.
Elliot Martin and Chris Shallman, a third seed from Richland, upset top-seeded Nick Johnson and Chris Martin from LC in a rematch of last year’s boys No. 1 doubles championship. Martin and Shallman won 6-1, 7-5, avenging last year’s 7-6, 6-3 loss to Johnson and Martin.
Clarkston’s Kyle Servatius and Eddie Rooney beat fourth-seeded Ali and Allen Ta (Kennewick) for third place.
Hanford’s Wandrille Hubert and Jon Witherspoon won the boys No. 2 doubles title, beating Jamin Adams and Dan Benjamin of Clarkston 6-2, 6-2. East Valley’s Kenji Scouton and Matt Mehlbreck lost 6-1, 6-2 to Sandpoint’s Ryan Williams and Justin Vaughn in the third-fourth place match.
Mead’s Erica Norris and Taylor Beeson teamed up in No. 1 mixed doubles and upset Richland’s top-seeded team of Laurel Thompson and John Sampson 6-1, 7-6 (4).
“Staying consistent is all we had to do,” Norris said. “We found their weak spot and attacked it and just stuck in it – we let them make the mistakes.”
G-Prep’s Mikaela Peterson and Andy Reiner defeated Ferris’ Michelle Curtis and Ryan Scott in three sets for third place.
Ferris’ Christy Curtis and Colin Griffith rolled past Richland’s Kendra Dautel and Liem Dinh, 6-1, 6-3, to win the No. 2 mixed doubles title.
Mead’s Meg Ryan and Ryan Gerbing beat Rachel Becholt and Lincoln Wesley (G-Prep) for third place.