Greene Central High School is located in Snow Hill, with a population of only 1,595 people in a small rural county. Only one high school, and barely more stoplights. But the tennis tradition is rich, with 2 state championships, 11 trips to the finals, regular Top 5 finishes, and an on-going streak of conference championships that could reach 30 years by season's end.
This year's squad is young - graduating a couple of proven winners and fielding a team void of any seniors. Coach Tim Medlin offered no grace period, crafting one of the tougher opening schedules seen in the State, including four 4A classification schools with solid tennis pedigrees and a 3A #9 ranked Croatan.
The young Lady Rams proved worthy, winning 4 of their opening 6 matches, and the two losses being competitive 3-6 battles. In fact, the Topsail loss was decided by a mere 2 points - with two match points slipping from their grasps deep into third set tiebreakers making the final difference between a 3-6 loss and a 5-4 win.
Still, the Greene Central girls gained good experience and confidence from the tough opening schedule. Ranked #3 in the preseason 2A Coaches Poll, the team begins conference play this week along with a scattering of meaningful non-conference battles remaining on the schedule. #4 ranked Raleigh Charter visits Snow Hill, as does 3A top-10 ranked Wilson Fike, Franklin Academy, and 3A West Carteret. Away matches include 2A Conference champion North Johnston, and 3A teams at C.B. Aycock and Northern Nash. Tough schedule for tough girls.
Heading the charge for the Lady Rams is junior Anna Katherine Medlin, barely 100 lbs in stature but well respected across the State. The coach's daughter sports a varied skill set and carries the confidence of back-to-back conference singles titles and a strong push as States last year. She opened her season winning 5 of 6 singles matches including 4A competition. At #2 seed, Rylee Greene hopes to build on her Top 4 doubles finish at States last year. Sophomores Aubree Smith and Grace Baggett return to the starting lineup as well with good offseason work.
While a lighter schedule might have helped Coach Medlin's career win total (currently 232-67), he is more focused on preparing his team to be a tough playoff opponent - both this year and next.
WOW
Wow Coach Tim, we have more students at West Johnston than the whole Town of Snow Hill! Great job promoting tennis and the key is having that feeder middle school program.You don`t have permission to comment here!