Frisco Centennial passes Abilene Wylie to win back-to-back state titles

WACO – Frisco Centennial is once again the Class 5A state tennis champion.

Frisco Centennial (20-2), champion in 2023 and No. 1 entering 2024, made the rankings official, capping an all-time best season in the state with a 10-2 victory over Abilene Wylie in the UIL state tournament final at Baylor University’s Hurd Tennis Center on Thursday.

After the championship game and the medal presentation, the players as well as the coaches, head coach Douglas Fair and assistant Carlos Aguilar, were overwhelmed with praise from parents, spectators and officials.

Fair has led three consecutive trips to the state tournament. He said this particular team’s mix of talent and commitment gave them an advantage.

“It’s a great honor to coach these kids,” he said. “I think we’re really good, but we’re also tough. They are so dedicated and once you get the taste of winning, you just want more of it. We do it right – with class and hard work.”

Like the day before against Austin LASA in the semifinals, the Titans also had a strong victory against Wylie (23-6), winning five of the seven doubles matches. However, the Bulldogs struggled as several games came to an end.

In girls’ No. 1 doubles, Noa Kosman and Akriti Bhati won 6-2, 7-6 and prevailed in the tiebreaker 8-6. Meanwhile, the last doubles match to be completed was the girls’ No. 3 team. In front of all their teammates and most spectators, Sahasra Dodda and Isha Ratnakaram achieved a tough 7:6, 3:6 (11:9) victory.

Wylie’s two wins came in mixed doubles and No. 2 boys doubles.

After suffering a four-game losing streak to start the year, the Bulldogs rattled off 19 straight wins to reach the championship game.

“These kids fought hard,” Wylie head coach Adam Cherry said. “They came together and really cheered each other on. We were a young group. I’m really looking forward to the future and I’m super proud.”

In singles, Centennial players Roshan Sheth, Aarohan Sharma, Trudi Kosman, Bhati and Dodda gave the Titans the wins they needed to take them to the top.

“I was confident we were going to come out and play really good singles,” Fair said. “Sometimes people see results and think ‘easy,’ but it’s not easy. After the doubles we could have been down 3:4. I had a speech ready just in case. I’m glad I didn’t have to use that.”