Sure, Klamath Union's Patricia Dougherty was able to get a small taste of a state tennis tournament environment last year when she won the singles title in the season-ending 4A Showcase as a freshman.
Considering the tournament had no players from 3A, 2A or 1A schools, though, it didn't offer the experience that she will face in her high school career going forward.
Dougherty will get a baptism of sorts Friday and Saturday in the OSAA/OnPoint Community Credit Union 4A/3A/2A/1A girls tournament at Oregon State University and Timberhill Tennis Club in Corvallis. She doesn't know exactly what to expect, and that's just fine with her.
“I'm kind of going in blind. I have no idea what's happening there,” Dougherty said. “I honestly like going in and not knowing who's going to be there, and the schools that we didn't play last year. It's really exciting. I feel like it gives me more experience.”
Dougherty, the No. 2 seed in the tournament, has been virtually unchallenged this season. In a rematch of last year's 4A Showcase final, she defeated Philomath sophomore Bailey Bell 6-2, 6-1, in line with the 6-0, 6-1 result from a year ago.
But Dougherty should get pushed at state. Catlin Gabel senior Lola Diaz Gonzalez is the top seed, and Bell and Catlin Gabel senior Anna Semler are seeded third and fourth, respectively.
“I'm pretty confident she can rise to the challenge that she'll meet up there with the different players and the whole scenarios,” Klamath Union coach Mary Young said. “Over the years, she's got some good match experience in these USTA tournaments, so I think she'll be OK.”
Dougherty, rated as a four-star college prospect by Tennis Recruiting Network, said she is in a good groove. She got a boost in April when she won a Level 3 junior tournament in Arizona.
“That's definitely one of the bigger ones that I've had,” she said. “It definitely made me more confident about my tennis game, especially with what's going on lately and everything going back to normal.
“I'm able to play more tennis, and I'm practicing more. Just going out there and winning that tournament made me more confident in what I was doing. It made me feel like I was on the right path with everything.”
Dougherty has had plenty of success against some of the state's other top players in junior tournaments. In the past year, she is 3-0 against both Sprague junior Libby Blair and 3-0 and Jesuit sophomore Carissa Gerung, who are seeded third and fourth, respectively, in the 6A tournament.
She has beaten Clackamas sophomore Lauren Han in her junior career, although Han, a five-star prospect who is the No. 1 seed in 6A, has had the upper hand in recent years.
“We have really good matches that are close and fun to play, but the last few times, she's come out on top,” Dougherty said.
Dougherty is bidding to become the fourth singles state champion from Klamath Union. She hopes to follow Val Jerecki (1983), Jessyca Arthur (1997) and Courtlyn Lam (2018, 2019), who now plays at Cal State LA.
Young said Dougherty “looks good, confident” heading into the state tournament.
“She's patient and she knows when to go for the winner,” Young said. “She hits with power and precision. Not only does the place the ball well, but she kind of overpowers you at the same time. She's a natural athlete, so she just moves really well. It's fun to watch.”
A look at the state tournaments this week:
Girls
6A
Tualatin Hills Tennis Center (Thursday-Saturday)
Top singles seeds: 1. Lauren Han, Clackamas, soph.; 2. Neena Feldman, Westview, jr.; 3. Libby Blair, Sprague, jr.; 4. Carissa Gerung, Jesuit, soph..
Top doubles seeds: 1. Amberly Au, jr./Karolina Dobiecka, sr., Westview; 2. Mishi Batinkova, jr./Libby Day, sr., Jesuit; 3. Shana Denham, jr./Sophie Denham, sr., Nelson; 4. Kate DeVall, jr./Meg DeVall, jr., West Linn
2019 state tournament: Sunset 28, Westview 12, Roseburg 11, Lake Oswego 10.5
5A
Portland Tennis Center (Friday), Tualatin Hills Tennis Center (Saturday)
Top singles seeds: 1. Kennedy Harris, La Salle Prep, fr.; Sophie Katz, Crescent Valley, soph.; 3. Olivia Corbett, Pendleton, sr.; 4. Kerry Lin, Crescent Valley, soph.
Top doubles seeds: 1. Zoe Hughes, soph./Kara Paterson, sr., Crescent Valley; 2. Mia Poppe, soph./Kate Scoggins, soph., Westview; 3. Adrianna Frank, sr./Olivia Knutson, sr., North Bend; 4. Rachel Lester, jr./Sydney Cassaro, soph., Ridgeview
2019 state tournament: Corvallis 21, Ashland 8, Crescent Valley 6, North Bend 6, West Albany 6
4A/3A/2A/1A
Oregon State University, Timberhill Tennis Club (Friday-Saturday)
Top singles seeds: 1. Lola Diaz Gonzalez, Catlin Gabel, sr.; 2. Patricia Dougherty, Klamath Union, soph.; 3. Bailey Bell, Philomath, soph.; 4. Anna Semler, Catlin Gabel, sr.
Top doubles seeds: 1. Lily Wand, jr./Thea Kapteyn, jr., Catlin Gabel; 2. Ana Garcia, sr./Maria Portillo de Mueller, sr., Estacada; 3. Hanna Poisson, sr./Pratheeka Weerakoon, soph., St. Mary's; 4. Brenda Ramirez, jr./Elsie Seals, fr., Vale
2019 state tournament: Marist Catholic 18, Catlin Gabel 13, Klamath Union 10, Oregon Episcopal 10
Boys
6A
Tualatin Hills Tennis Center, Thursday-Saturday
Top singles seeds: 1. Gus Krauel, Central Catholic, sr.; 2. Tannor Binder, Beaverton, jr.; 3. Will Semler, Lincoln, soph.; 4. Jax Ledwith, West Linn, jr.
Top doubles seeds: 1. Cooper Lahti, jr./Sean Miller, sr., Lincoln; 2. Parsa Nasri, jr./Kei Watanabe, jr., Sunset; 3. Reif Larson, soph./Chase Balddocchi, sr., Jesuit; 4. Tyler Pyle, sr./Nathan Mittlestadt, sr., Lakeridge
2019 state tournament: Jesuit 35, Lincoln 27, Lakeridge 10.5, Sprague 10
5A
Portland Tennis Center (Friday), Tualatin Hills Tennis Center (Saturday)
Top singles seeds: 1. Aidan McBride, La Salle Prep, soph.; 2. Noah Curtis, Crescent Valley, soph.; 3. Yoshi Saito, Redmond, sr.; 4. Carsen Luna, Churchill, jr.
Top doubles seeds: 1. Eldon Nichols, soph./Breslin Nichols, soph., La Salle Prep; 2. Mina Schepmann, sr./Ian Bower, sr., Ashland; 3. Ryder McCoy-Hansen, soph./Harris Nguyen, jr., La Salle Prep; 4. Tanner Jones, jr./Nico Afti, sr., Redmond
2019 state tournament: Redmond 15, Crescent Valley 12, Churchill 8, La Salle Prep 7.5
4A/3A/2A/1A
Oregon State University, Timberhill Tennis Club (Friday-Saturday)
Top singles seeds: 1. Zach Moore, Cascade, jr.; 2. Tai Leong, Catlin Gabel, jr.; 3. Lucas Franssen, Marist Catholic, sr.; 4. Dawson Beckstead, Philomath, jr.
Top doubles seeds: 1. Peter Ye, sr./Will Silver, sr., Catlin Gabel; 2. Peyton Tyner, soph./Jack Kiefer, jr., Marist Catholic; 3. Lucas Holiday, jr./Ben Lee, sr., Catlin Gabel; 4. Ethan Tieu, jr./Richard Li, soph., Oregon Episcopal
2019 state tournament: Catlin Gabel 15, Valley Catholic 14, Marist Catholic 12, Marshfield 8
jerryu@osaa.org
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