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With every swing of his racket, Will Benson was at least vaguely aware that Snow Canyon's state title hopes hung in the balance.
The junior didn't know how close it was: His second singles final match with Juan Diego's Connor Kempin was a de facto team-title match. Benson had played Kempin in youth tennis, and he knew he was in for a tough match.
But the pressure appeared to slide off him as Benson scored a big two-set win (6-2, 6-1) that secured Snow Canyon's first 3A title in boys' tennis. The Warriors advanced to the finals in four of the five brackets, but Benson was the only individual winner who helped knock off two-time defending champ Juan Diego on Saturday at the Eccles Tennis Center.
"It feels great," Benson said. "All these guys wanted a championship, and we did it. Our coach just told us to focus on each match, and that's what we did."
Equipped with five seniors on their squad of seven, the Warriors built a lead on points by sending finalists to first singles, second singles and both doubles.
The Soaring Eagle made it tight at the finish, as the team had two individual champs: Ryan Kempin in first singles and Ben Argilius in third singles. Snow Canyon sophomore Matt Moore gave Kempin a fight, but Juan Diego's top singles player fought through injury to win in two sets. It was his third individual title in three years, and his first in first singles after taking over for his graduated brother Brendan Kempin.
"It was tough today, but it was good to see that we competed out there," said Kempin, who said he reassured his younger brother Connor after the loss. "It was a great year for us. We're a young team, and I can't wait to see what we do in the future."
Snow Canyon led the point standings with 20, and Juan Diego finished with 18. Desert Hills finished third with 15 points by virtue of sweeping both doubles brackets.
In 2A, Waterford topped the standings for a third straight year. The Ravens went 2 for 3 in finals matches on Saturday, boasting individual champs in first singles and third singles.
Junior Quinn Pritchett knocked out Grand senior Elijah Stock, getting his second state title of his career. Senior Christian Heath finally got his first after falling in the finals in the previous two state championships — he beat Grand's Alec Tatton in two sets.
"I definitely dug deep with that match experience," Heath said. "It's pretty awesome to finally come out on top."
Grand finished second behind Waterford with winners in second doubles. Wasatch Academy's Lucas Hafner won second singles, and Manti's first-doubles team took state.
Twitter: @kylegoon —
Boys' tennis championships
3A
Team title • Snow Canyon
First singles • Ryan Kempin (Juan Diego) def. Matt Morgan (Snow Canyon), 6-3, 6-4
Second singles • Will Benson (Snow Canyon) def. Connor Kempin (Juan Diego), 6-2, 6-1
Third singles • Ben Argilius (Juan Diego) def. Connor Burke (Park City), 6-2, 6-1
First doubles • Braden Evans and Kyler Kennedy (Desert Hills) def. Devin Radmall and Nick Csere (Snow Canyon), 6-3, 6-4
Second doubles • Austin Hardy and Conner McArthur (Desert Hills) def. Jonathan Morgan and Trevor Muse (Snow Canyon), 6-3, 7-5
2A
Team title • Waterford
First singles • Quinn Pritchett (Waterford) def. Elijah Stock (Grand), 6-0, 6-4
Second singles • Lucas Hafner (Wasatch Academy) def. Davis Hardy (Manti), 6-3, 6-1
Third singles • Christian Heath (Waterford) def. Alec Tatton (Grand), 6-1, 6-4
First doubles • Thomas McFarlane and Kody Quarnberg (Manti) def. Jackson Sponaugle and Xander Priskos (Waterford), 6-3, 6-4
Second doubles • Derek Johnson and Elton Kunze Jones (Grand) def. Spencer Mitcher and Grange Simpson (San Juan), 6-4, 6-4