The #2 seeded Chillicothe Hornets made the short trip to Trenton High School to meet the rival Bulldogs on Wednesday afternoon, with the winner earning the Class 1, District 15 championship and advancing to the state playoffs.
In a hotly contested dual between two evenly-matched sides, Chillicothe gave THS only its second head-to-head defeat of the season, winning the contest 5-4.
Key in the Hornets team victory was strong singles play, as all six matches were decided in two sets, with Chillicothe winning four to Trenton’s two. The most competitive of the singles matches was in the #4 battle, with the Hornets’ Joshua Adams defeating the Bulldogs’ Tucker Otto, 6-4, 7-6, with the second set decided by a 7-3 tiebreak. At #5 singles, Jadon Collins took the win for Chillicothe, defeating Victor Markell 7-5, 6-4, with the #1 duel going to Chace Corbin over Trent Villacampa 6-4, 6-3. Chillicothe took the win in the #6 singles battle, with Jackson Reeter outlasting Jacob Horton 6-1, 6-3.
Trenton did get two singles triumphs, with Bradyn Sager taking the #2 matchup in dominating fashion, 6-0, 6-1 over Gabriel Peterson, while Jonin Villacampa, playing in the #3 singles match for THS, took care of Emmett Young 6-3, 7-5.
In comparison to singles, Trenton’s doubles play was stronger, with the Bulldogs taking two victories to the Hornets one. However, Chillicothe’s victory came in decisive fashion, with Peterson and Young cruising to an 8-0 shutout of Jonin Villacampa and Jacob Horton. Doubles wins for Trenton were from Trent Villacampa and Braydn Sager by 8-5 score over Corbin and Adams, and Otto and Markell grinding out an 8-6 win over Collins and Reeter.
The loss ends the Bulldogs team portion of the season with a record of 12-2. Chillicothe advances into the Class 1 state sectional round at 11 o’clock on Monday morning at the Santa Fe Tennis Courts in Independence, battling Warrensburg. Savannah and St. Michael’s will play at 11 o’clock as well, with the two winners battling in the quarterfinal round at 1 o’clock.
