University of Virginia Library

Cavs State Champs,
Murray Singles Titlist

By FLETCHER THOMPSON

With the scenic
beauty of Blacksburg providing
an inspirational backdrop, the
varsity tennis team coasted to
the State tennis title this
Friday and Saturday, by virtue
of a resounding victory in the
State tournament held at VPI.

Between admiring glances at
the countryside's natural
wonders, the netmen
successfully managed to
contend with extremely fast
courts and a host of
competitors from five state
schools to turn the barnyard
get-together into a walk-away.

The Cavs finished the
two-day competition with 21
points, as their closest rivals,
William and Mary, who fell 8-1
here last Thursday, tallied only
ten.

Trailing the Indians were
VPI with 8, ODU with 6½,
Richmond with 2, while the
hapless VMI contingent
neglected to break into the
scoring column.

The singles competition was
divided into two classes, with
the first three men on each
team vying for the Division A
crown and the four, five and
six players for the B Division
honors. There was only one
doubles title.

In the A Division, Cavalier
Captain Doug Waterman
reached the finals by downing
teammate Rick Swift in
straight sets, 6-3, 6-3, but was
the victim of revenge-minded
Ford Robinette of W&M,
whom he had subdued in three
sets two days earlier.

Robinette showed a
complete reversal of his earlier
form, taking the first set 6-3
and then shutting off
Waterman in the second, 6-0.

The Cavs were more
impressive in the B Division,
where Frank Hatten and Hoyt
Murray trounced everybody in
sight, to reach the finals of the
eighteen-man bracket.

There, Murray, who plays
ahead of Hatten in the Virginia
lineup, showed why, though
not without some difficulty
triumphing 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.

In the doubles slug fest,
Murray and Hatten again came
through, bombing Gobblers
Harry Rinehart and Dick
Webb, conquerors of
top-seeded Cavs Swift and Jim
Ratliff, by a score of 6-3, 6-3.