FLOWERY BRANCH — The Flowery Branch girls 3-0 victory over Union Grove Tuesday in the Class 5A tennis playoffs was history that has been years in the making.
And Lady Falcons coach Ginger Jackson, usually rathered reserved after any kind of win, said it called for a celebration.
“You know normally we just get ready for the next match, but we’re going to celebrate this one today,” she said. “I was pretty wound up beforehand because I thought we had a good chance. I’m just elated right now.”
And why not? The win pushed the Lady Falcons into the semifinal round for the first time in program history. Twice before, in 2015 and 2017, they had been on the precipice only to come up short.
The anticipated battle with the evenly-matched Lady Wolverines, who also were looking for their first-ever semifinal berth, never materialized. The Lady Falcons jumped to quick leads in all five matches with Olivia Nance making quick work of Cara Coursey 6-1, 6-0 in just over 30 minutes for the first team point.
The No. 2 doubles team of freshmen Alicia Quast and Kendalle Quast finished moments later with an equally dominant 6-0, 6-0 win over Claudia Hodges and Amy Pickett. Pickett was a late addition taking the place of Morgan Morris, who injured her knee in warm-ups and could not continue.
The Branch's No. 1 doubles team of senior Brenna Martin and freshman Alyssa McSpadden closed out the match with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Keila Noel and Junine Ulysse in just over an hour. Flowery Branch singles players Annabelle Thomas and Olivia Correa both were up a set in their matches when the match was called.
Martin and Correa both were part of the two previous quarterfinal losses. Martin needed little time to express her thoughts.
“One of the best feelings I’ve ever had,” Martin said. “I felt as this season has gone along we’ve gotten better. Coach (Jackson) just told us to go play our hearts out. But we couldn’t have done it without the freshmen we have.”
Jackson said McSpadden and the Quast twins were a key ingredient.
“Last year I told (the media) we had some upcoming girls that would make a difference. The freshmen have really come on and been very steady for us,” Jackson said. “We talked about doing all the little things right and they did a great job of that.”
Now, Jackson and the Lady Falcons will turn their attention to Kell in next week’s semifinals for a chance at their first-ever berth in the state championship match. That match must be completed by next Tuesday and will be held in Marietta.
“We’ll start looking at them (Wednesday) after we celebrate this one,” Jackson said. “It’s a big moment for us, but there is still more to be done.”
