YAKIMA – The 2A District 5 tournament finished its second day of matches Friday where local teams have continued to move up in the tournament. The Ephrata Tigers have a boys and girls singles and doubles team each and the Huskies will send their first girls doubles team, Rylinn Jones and Launa Mollotte, to play in the semifinals. 

“I’m just super proud of them, I’ve had a great year with these girls,” said Huskies girls coach Priscilla Tovar. “They’ve been with me since their sophomore year and they’re a really special team so I’m really looking forward to them battling it out tomorrow. 

The Huskies first doubles team beat Selah’s number two team in the first round of the tournament 6-1, 6-0 and went on to beat Quincy’s number one team of Vanesa Quintero and Crystal Vargas in the quarterfinals 6-4, 6-3. They are now set to face East Valley’s Emily Knautz and Ceci Mendoza Camacho, who earned the doubles team of the year, said Tovar. 

The Tigers’ girls team has also had success at the tournament as Ali Helaas won her quarterfinals match against Quincy’s Caia Williams 6-0, 6-2. This was their third time playing against each other this season. 

“That was really awesome, they’ve met each other three times and Ali has won all three of those so we were proud of her for that,” said Tigers girls coach Emily Allsopp. 

Helaas played against number one seed Hannah Sonnichsen from Prosser in the semifinals, where she lost 2-6, 1-6. She will now move on to play for third place against Grandview’s Geselle Razo where the winner will move on to the crossover event Saturday. 

First girls doubles, Erika Morford and Chloe Ho from the Ephrata team played Selah’s second doubles team, Brianne Hull and Madilyn Moss, in the first round and won 6-1, 6-2. The two moved into the quarterfinals, where they earned a 6-3,6-3 win over the Huskies’ second doubles, Shaylee Freeman and Faith Risenmay, and will now move on to play Ellensburg’s McKenna Franklin and Teresa Garcia-Green in the semifinals. 

“I’ve just been telling them, just don’t stress out over the fact that it’s a championship or a semifinal,” said Allsopp. “Just go in and play.” 

Tigers’ singles player Josh Mullings won a tiebreaker set in the semifinals 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 to move him along to the championship match for the Tigers, where he will play against Prosser’s Owen Hartliep, where the winner will get to move on to the state tournament. The Tigers boys doubles team of Charles Flynn and Jacob Wolther is moving on to the semifinals after winning in the quarterfinals 6-4, 6-0. 

Both the Huskies and the Tigers are prepping their players for today’s matches as the district tournament comes to a close. Allsopp said she is telling her players they just need to have confidence in themselves and to be ready to face familiar opponents. 

“Don’t underestimate any of your opponents, but don’t underestimate yourselves either,” she said to her players. “This could be some of your last matches, and I want you guys to go in and have fun and play the very best that you can.” 

Tovar said Jones and Mollette have been working on everything to be ready for what could be a challenging match against East Valley today. They have faced this doubles team only once this season due to a schedule conflict earlier this season. 

“Tennis is such a head game, and districts is anybody’s game,” she said. “We’ve seen in the past second doubles teams and third doubles teams take out first doubles teams, doesn’t matter that they’re seeded number one, our girls are more than capable of beating that team.” 

The third day of the 2A District 5 tennis championship tournament begins today at 10:30 a.m. at East Valley Elementary. 

    Josh Mullings played first singles for the Tigers and will be playing in the boys singles championship match today against Prosser’s Owen Hartliep.
  

    Pictured from a game earlier this season, Erika Morford and doubles partner Chloe Ho have moved on to the semifinals.
  

    Chloe Ho from a previous match at home this season, both her and Erika Morford are set to face Ellensburg’s McKenna Franklin and Teresa Garcia-Green in the semifinals.
  

    Charles Flynn and Jacob Wolther from the Tigers face against Selah’s Caleb Adams and Luke Gates in the semifinals today.
  

    A picture from her last match against Caia Williams, Tigers’ Ali Helaas has had great success at the tournament and will be playing for the third-place spot against Grandview’s Geselle Razo.