Asheville Rallies to Win 3-A State Championship

Asheville High School rallied for a 5-4 victory over Cardinal Gibbons to win the 3-A state championship in men's tennis on Saturday, May 22nd at the Burlington Tennis Center.  Asheville, coached by Jerry Porter, was down 4-1 in singles and had already lost the first set at number two singles, but Tito Poplowski rallied for a third set win and then the Cougars swept the doubles matches to pull out the dramatic victory.   The Cougars finished the season 19-1 while Cardinal Gibbons, coached by Andrew Tuttle, finished 22-5 for the year.
Singles
Stuart Depaolo (A) d. Chris Geaslen (CG) 6-2, 6-0
Tito Poplowski (A) d. Matt Daly (CG) 2-6, 6-2, (10-6)
Killian Steer (CG) d. Morris Porter (A) 6-1, 6-2
Greg Galush(CG) d. Leon Poplowski (A) 6-1, 7-5
Andrew Rinderer (CG) d. Will Lewis (A) 6-1, 6-2
Pierce Beary (CG) d. David Howerton (A) 6-0, 6-1
Doubles
Porter/T. Poplowski (A) d. Geasley/Daly (CG) 11-10(8)
Depaolo-L. Poplowski (A) d. Steer/Galush (CG) 10-2
Lewis/Howerton (A) d. Rinderer/Beary (CG) 10-8