Having been one point away from a state championship berth in 2006, Clarkston’s tennis squad had hopes of sneaking in with a solid performance at the regional playoff May 18 at Utica Eisenhower.
The Wolves though, were unable to pull off the upsets needed to make their way to the state’s grand stage, racking up 10 points on the day. West Bloomfield, the expected favorite for the event, came through, delivering a perfect day on the courts and taking home first place with 32 team points.
Birmingham Brother Rice (23) came in second place for the second consecutive year. The host Eagles (13) and Rochester (11) were left for Clarkston to compete with to gain enough points for entry into the finals.
After defeating Rochester and losing to Eisenhower during the regular season, Clarkston coach Chaz Claus was hoping for the same result in the playoffs.
‘We would have liked to have done better in terms relating to them,? Claus said.
‘I’m not totally unhappy with the way they played, we needed to pull some upsets and we didn’t. That’s the way things go sometimes.?
Brother Rice’s resurgence this season made for an anticlimactic battle for third place in the regional because their strength as the second-place team left other competitors on the outside looking in, unlike last season, Claus said.
‘We went in with higher expectations, but you expect to do well. There were a couple matches I thought we might make a run at. It came out the way it was seeded,? Claus said.
The Wolves had a strong placing in the Oakland Activities Association is part of the strength Claus appreciates about this year’s squad.
‘Ending up second in the league was very strong on our part. We were consistent in ways a lot of other teams weren’t and I’m proud of the way we played,? he said.