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(GHS TENNIS | CONTRIBUTED PHOTO) Jade Dospapas in her matches during the district tennis tournament Wednesday, April 23 in Brownwood. Dospapas finished second at the event to qualify for the regional championships in Lubbock. -
(GHS TENNIS | CONTRIBUTED PHOTO) Jade Dospapas finished fourth at the regional championships for tennis Saturday, May 10 at Texas Tech. She competed against multiple high caliber opponents to qualify for day two.
Despite the Graham High School tennis season officially coming to an end, it was a great day for one of its finest performers.
Jade Dospapas participated in both days of the regional tournament and had a strong finish.
Dospapas had an outstanding last couple of weeks both through being honored as one of the top performers on the team this season and for her efforts during the district tournament in Brownwood.
Dospapas was named the Lady Blues most valuable player for tennis during the spring sports banquet and that definitely showed in her performance at the district tournament. Dospapas led the way advancing all the way to the championship match against Rose Cordes of Stephenville.
Despite not winning that match, being the runner up for the women’s singles tournament was strong enough to advance to the regional championships.
Dospapas traveled to Texas Tech for the regional tournament Friday and Saturday, May 9-10. She once again had a strong showing on day one.
The Graham High School Tennis Facebook page released a statement about her performance after day one.
“Jade had a good day at Regionals. (She) fought three rounds and made it to day two. She will play for third place tomorrow and a chance to go to state,” the post said. “Best wishes to Jade. Thanks for making Graham proud.”
While Dospapas was not able to qualify for the state tournament, she still had a strong performance on day two. She finished in fourth place when everything was said and done and the community made sure to let her know they were still proud of her efforts.
Dospapas has been a strong leader for the team during her time in the program and has qualified for the regional tournament multiple times at this stage in her athletic career. Head coach Matt Birdwell said her skill comes from her lifelong passion.
“Jade has been playing tennis since she was a little kid,” Birdwell said. “She has been part of our program since her seventh grade year.”
The longer Dospapas is in the program, the more she will continue to improve and be a pillar of success for the Graham community in tennis.
