PRATT ? The Iola High School Class of 2019 crossed the stage and got their diplomas Saturday afternoon and while the vast majority got to throw up their caps in celebration once it was all over, there was one senior Mustang who was not in attendance.
Senior Bret Plumlee and his junior tennis doubles partner Elijah Fawson were in Pratt, competing in the 4A Tennis State Championship Tournament on Friday and Saturday.
The two Mustangs made Plumlee?s missing his graduation worth it though, as they battled through both days of the tournament to end the season with a 3-4 record and 12th place overall.
?I?m so proud of their effort,? head coach Dan Berg said. ?They showed some fantastic play and diligence over the weekend. We will miss Bret next year but we?re also looking forward to Elijah coming back for another great season.?
The two started out versus Bishop Miege and got a 6-1, 6-3 win before facing the first of three doubles regional winners that they would go up against during the tournament in Buhler.
They lost that one 6-0, 6-0 moving them into the consolation bracket where it went from two six-point matches to one nine-point match.
They opened with a 9-5 win over El Dorado to close out play on Friday and then after a two-hour rain delay Saturday morning, the duo came out and defeated Independence, another regional winner, 9-5 which moved them into the medal rounds.
After that, three-straight losses to regional-champ Winfield (9-3), Independence (9-3) and Wichita-Trinity Academy (9-7) moved the Mustangs into 12th.
The duo held a break up to 5-4 in their loss versus Trinity before falling.
The medal is the first for Iola since Colby Works finished 11th at state back in 2016.
Plumlee is one of two seniors on this year?s team along with Jon Miller. A trip to state had been the goal for the last couple of years for the senior and this year he got to top it all off with a medal.
?I just want to thank Coach Berg and my teammates,? Plumlee said. ?They?ve helped me grow into the player I am today and it?s been an honor playing with them. I?m glad I was able to represent Iola at state, even if I did miss graduation.?
Fawson will get another chance to make a run to the state tournament next season when he returns along with three other incoming-seniors and a returning junior.
