The Bay Valley Athletic League served up an exciting finale to this year's tennis season at Monday and Tuesday's league championship tournament held at Heritage High School. De La Salle dominated the event, as usual, although Deer Valley gave the Spartans a run for their money.

Senior Kraig Foster finished a fantastic high school tennis career with a run to the championship match against De La Salle's No. 1 singles player, John Scalmanini. Foster knocked off Antioch's Jordan Sabella 10-6 in the first round and Liberty's Jon Rodgers 10-5 in the second on his way to a tough quarterfinal showdown with De La Salle's Sean Gordon, whom he beat 7-6(6), 2-6, 6-3 to advance to Tuesday's portion of the competition.

Foster continued his remarkable play in the semifinals, defeating Kevin Griffin of De La Salle 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 to advance to the finals against Scalmanini, who is widely considered the top player in the league. Although Scalmanini defeated Foster in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, to claim the league title, Deer Valley's top player was satisfied with his performance and remains optimistic that he'll receive a North Coast Section bid.

Photo by Jennifer Birkland

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