Glen Rosales, for the Journal
The Albuquerque High boys have been banging quite loudly on the door of the high school state tennis scene recently, finishing runner-up in consecutive years at the state championships, but the Bulldogs have not quite broken through.
And while winning the Albuquerque Metro Championships is not nearly the same thing as carting off with the big blue trophy in May, Saturday’s hefty addition to the AHS showcase is still an awfully big deal.
“I keep using these words all season long,” Bulldogs coach Mike Rocca said. “It’s tenacity and it is hard work playing for one another, and they did it.”
On the girls side, Albuquerque Academy held off a stubborn Sandia squad to win 5-2 in what was the first of a new format for the metro tournament.
The individual brackets were eliminated. Instead, the 18-team field was divided into six pools of three. The six-pool winners advanced to the championship bracket, with the top two-seeded teams earning first-elimination-round byes.
“It’s a different format this year, but it gives them a lot more matches,” Chargers coach Amy Badger said. “And it’s definitely, obviously, a team thing. We’re all in it together.”
