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Ashley LaFountain had the same reaction any of us would have if we knew we would most likely face the defending state champion in the second round of Friday and Saturday's Division II state tennis tournament in Columbus.
LaFountain, a sophomore at Oak Harbor, said her reaction was, “Oh, wow.”
Before LaFountain, a two-time state qualifier, gets an opportunity to play Waynesville senior Alyssa Ritchie, she has to get past first-round opponent Mollie Miller, a freshman from Portsmouth.
“My dad told me I play Mollie Miller,” said LaFountain, whose father, Rick, is the Rockets' boys and girls tennis coach. “I had never heard of her, so we went online to learn more about her. That's when I saw I might play Alyssa. She's a senior and she won state last year. I'll just try to go out there and play my best tennis and play it one point at a time. Anything can happen on any given day.”
Last year, LaFountain took third in her district but won her first-round match in Columbus, 6-3, 6-1. She then lost in straight sets to Cincinnati Indian Hills junior Kelsey Matthews, who has also qualfied to this week's tournament. Matthews lost to Ritchie, the eventual champion, in the semifinals.
LaFountain returns to Ohio State's Stickney Tennis Center with more confidence and a better all-around game than she had as a freshman. She took second at last week's district tournament in Port Clinton.
“I'm mentally tougher than I was last year,” LaFountain said. “Last year I got kind of tired toward the end of the season and I wasn't staying in those close matches. This year I'm doing a better job of winning those closer matches. My second serve has improved; last year I had a lot of double faults. I usually try to take each day, whenever I hit, to work on my serve for at least 20 minutes or so.”
The 5-foot-7 LaFountain, a left-hander, takes a 33-2 singles record into the state tournament, with all 33 wins coming in straight sets. She has a 63-5 career record at No. 1 singles.
Rick LaFountain said his daughter, who is the only Oak Harbor boy or girl to reach the state tennis tournament, is approaching this weekend as just another tournament.
“She'll do her best,” he said. “Last year she was mentally tired, not knowing what to expect. This year she knows what to expect. If she gets beat, I think it will be by a better player.”
LaFountain said a big key for her is to get an early lead in both sets.
“You want to take it one game at a time,” she said. “I have to get my serves warmed up and hit my forehand cross-court shots. A key to my game is to get my forehand warmed up. Being a lefty helps because my slice shot curves toward their left-hand side, and that usually messes people up until they get used to it. I have a really good player in my first match, so we'll see how that goes.”
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