Parkersburg tennis sweeps South in rivalry match (2025)

Parkersburg’s Manny Tewodros returns a backhand during his No. 1 doubles match against Parkersburg South, Friday at Erickson All-Sports Facility. (Photo by Kerry Patrick)

PARKERSBURG – With other electives taking precedence for both teams, the tennis programs from Parkersburg and Parkersburg South entered into an altered state this week.

Members from both sides jumped up several notches on the ladder to compensate for the absence of four Patriots and the top two singles players for the Big Reds.

On the heels of an impressive win over top-ranked and defending state champion Hurricane from the boys team, Parkersburg pulled off a 7-0 sweep of South in both the boys and girls division, during Friday’s winter-type temperatures at Erickson All-Sports Facility.

“Depth-wise on the boys side, we probably have our top eight players all within a point of each other,” PHS coach Eric Stanley said. “When someone has to miss, the other guys can step in and step up. You don’t get that very often in tennis. We’re lucky enough to have that for a couple of years.”

Normally No. 3 in singles, Manny Tewodros won his No. 1 singles match by defeating Zach Farnsworth 8-1 after hooking up with fellow Big Red Truman Roberts for an 8-3 win over Farnsworth and Michael Kestner at No. 1 doubles.

Parkersburg South’s Sami McKinney stretches for a forehand return during her No. 1 singles match against Parkersburg, Friday at Erickson All-Sports Facility. (Photo by Kerry Patrick)

Tewodros alluded to the Hurricane win as a major stepping stone since the Big Reds had never defeated the Redskins in his four years at PHS.

“The last couple of days we have had a couple of guys missing, so that win was pretty big,” Tewodros said. “We know that in case somebody’s gone down the road, it’s next person up. We all feel like we are at the same level – we are really good one through eight.”

The final score in the defeat for South at No. 1 doubles was not indicative how tight Farnsworth and Kestner played PHS. The Patriot twosome have a chemistry they developed over many years of playing together.

“We have been playing since seventh grade, so we have a really good chemistry,” Kestner said. “We have really good call-outs and really good ball work.”

Farnsworth’s role on the doubles team is taking care of anything in the vicinity of the net.

Parkersburg’s No. 1 doubles team of Liya Tewodros, left, and Emma Stanley take a break during a side exchange against Parkersburg South, Friday at Erickson All-Sports Facility (Photo by Kerry Patrick)

“We just wanted to see how many points we could get, and we got a lot,” Farnsworth said. “We got to a lot of balls, so we were happy with that.

“Playing Manny in singles, you have to stand back further because when he hits it back it comes back on the surface really hard. He had some really hard serves.”

Tewodros’ younger sister, Liya, teamed with Emma Stanley for an 8-3 win over Sami McKinney and Makaila Coplin in No. 1 doubles.

At No. 1 singles, Liya Tewodros received a handful at the outset from McKinney. The match was tied at 2-2 before Tewodros reeled off five straight games. McKinney showed her earlier form and answered with two straight wins before dropping an 8-4 decision.

“On the girls side, we have 12 girls – seven are freshmen, which gives us a very young squad,” coach Stanley said. “We have one senior, one junior and two sophomores. We are a very young squad, but they are doing their best facing the toughest girls and opponents in the state and in our region.

Parkersburg South’s Zach Farnsworth digs out a forehand during a doubles match against Parkersburg, Friday at Erickson All-Sports Facility. (Photo by Kerry Patrick)

“It’s a bit of a challenge and they have got to do some growing. They are all in it and they want to be successful.”

Contact Kerry Patrick at kpatrick@newsandsentinel.com