03/28/2024
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ELIZABETHTOWN – East Bladen seniors Lily Lin & Alyssa Futrell and West Bladen sophomores Kaden Thurman & Lainey Autry will meet Wednesday on the East Bladen tennis courts to decide the Three Rivers Conference Class 2A girls’ tennis doubles championship.

Top-seeded Lin & Futrell received an opening round bye Tuesday then defeated the Whiteville team of Reed Threadgill & Jillian Young 6-1, 6-1 in the 2nd round. The Lin/Futrell team rolled past Whiteville’s Elizabeth Morris & Lillian Soles 6-0, 6-2 in the semifinals.

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Tuesday’s tournament play
Photos by Kenneth Armstrong

The Thurman/Autry team was seeded 2nd and also received a 1st round bye, before defeating the Fairmont team of Helen Perry & Addison Waldo 6-0, 6-2. In an epic semifinal battle Thurman & Autry rallied to outlast East Bladen’s Carlie West & Heather Hardin 4-6, 6-6 (9-7), 6-4.

West, a senior, & Hardin, a junior, were seeded 3rd and received a 1st round bye before cruising past Fairmont’s Trinity Thompson & Nakeeyah Jenkins 6-0, 6-2 in the 2nd round. The West/Hardin team will play Whiteville’s Morris/Soles Wednesday in the 3rd place match.

In singles play, West Bladen senior Marley Fletcher, the No. 3 seed, will play No. 4 seed Cambyl Scott of Fairmont in the 3rd place match Wednesday. Tuesday, Fletcher received an opening round bye then defeated Fairmont’s Kiley Oxendine 6-1, 6-4 before losing to No. 2 seed Addison Jacobs of South Columbus 6-4, 6-4 in the semifinals.

Three other Bladen County players lost their opening round singles matches Tuesday. East Bladen junior Jayden Willington lost her opening set to Whiteville’s Xztashya Porter 6-3 then withdrew.

East Bladen senior Hannah Wheeless was defeated by Fairmont’s Oxendine 6-0, 6-1, and West Bladen sophomore Haley Bryan dropped her opening match to St. Pauls’ Camille Kenard 6-2, 6-0.

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