On November 4^th, seniors Lindsey Kerlin and Peyton Reese participated in the Hershey State Doubles Tournament after they had achieved gold in the District 9 Class 2A Doubles Tournament last month. It proved to be a new opportunity for the Lady Bison Tennis Team, as it has been 44 years since the Clearfield won the doubles tournament.

The tournament was held at the Hershey Racket Club on Briarcrest Drive. The facility houses eight indoor tennis courts as well as two additional courts outside the area. On that day, Friday November 4^th, two tournaments were occurring: one for the resigning singles champions around the area, and another for the doubles champions. Seniors Kerlin and Reese were instructed to be at the facility around 10 for a meeting with all the coordinating teams. Within that meeting, one of the PIAA officials reviewed the major rules of the tournament along with the overview of the main bracket. The officials announced that the sixteen teams within that building were the top doubles players in the state of Pennsylvania. It was there that the Lady Bisons met their opponent, Rayna Thakkar and Gwyn Belt from Sewickley Academy.  “It was very nerve wracking, seeing all the parents and coaches that were lined up to watch us.” Peyton Reese stated, “It was very different from the usual matches we were used to.”

The Lady Bisons knew a States tournament wasnt going to be easy; in just a couple of minutes they were going to face off against a private academy, but they gave it their all and pulled out two games on the previous successors, Rayna Thakkar and Gwyn Belt. Sewickley Academy continued through the bracket until the semi-finals, losing against Emma Perkins and Victoria Waltz from Conrad Weiser.

As Brent Hill famously stated, “Losing is essential to anyone’s success. The more you lose, the more you want to win.” This was the last high school match for the Lady Bison seniors. Looking toward the future, they hope that the underclassman follow in their footsteps and achieve a States Title in the near future.