How Camden tennis withstood three venue changes, weather to repeat as state champ
It took three venues and more than five hours, but the Camden boys repeated as state tennis champions.
The Bulldogs defeated Daniel 4-0 in winnning the Class 3A championship in a match finished at Dreher High School. It’s the third title in program history and second straight, but the previous two championships didn’t have the twists and turns that occurred during Saturday’s match .
The match started at the Eddie Floyd Tennis Center in Florence just after noon, and Camden won the first set of all six matches before heavy rain fell. There also was a 30-minute lightning delay before that. Officials decided to move the end of the match to the Camden Tennis Center, which is located a few blocks from Camden’s high school and a little less than hour from Florence. As both teams and fans arrived there, volunteers including Camden coaches from other sports and volunteers finished drying the courts.
But just before the teams were scheduled to resume the match, rain fell again, prompting a third change in venue, a move move to Dreher High School in Columbia, a 35-minute drive from Camden.
Once both teams got settled, it took a little less than an hour for the Bulldogs to finish off their second straight state championship.
“It was a long day. Started out at Florence and ended up at Dreher High School,” said David Pope, Camden’s No. 1 singles player who is headed to Wofford. “Thought we were going to play at our courts, but it was a crazy journey. We have a great team this year and a bunch of dogs for sure.”
Pope said it was a lot easier to stay focused despite the changes because they were all leading in their matches.
Camden coach Abby Baytes was proud of the way the team responded to the different situations especially with the weather that came up during the day.
“Flexibility was the word of the day. You aren’t able to control the weather, so we tried to keep our spirits up,” Bates said.
The uniqueness of the day added to the crazy week for Camden just to make it to the championship. The Bulldogs defeated Waccamaw 4-3, in another marathon affair. Waccamaw was up a set in the deciding doubles match and was one game away from winning before one of its players was disqualified for making an obscene gesture. That kept Camden’s title hopes alive.
The Bulldogs made the most of that opportunity.
On the court Saturday, the Bulldogs were dominant. They didn’t drop a set throughout the day. Winners were Hank Greenway, Wilson Nash, William Grumbach and the doubles team of Harris Younghans and Robert Jenkins.
Pope was up a set and 5-1 in the second and Slade Funderburk, the No. 2, was up a set and 4-2 in the second before the matches were called because of rain.
“This was our goal to get back here,” Bates said. “... We went in knowing that we had to earn it and nothing was going to be given just because we won last year. I think that mindset helped them play their best.”
The title added to another strong athletic year for Camden. The girls basketball team repeated as state champion in March. The Bulldogs also played for state championships in football and volleyball.
Camden and Daniel weren’t the only championship match affected by rain. The Class 4A championship between Myrtle Beach and Riverside also was halted with the score tied 3-3 with No. 1 doubles deciding the match. Riverside won the first set in doubles and was up 2-0, but the match will likely be finished Monday or later next week.
The Class 2A match was finished before the rain as Oceanside Collegiate.defeated Christ Church.
