PROVO — If Park City's Matt Groy didn't know what was at stake during his match, he sure did after. Groy was mobbed on the court by his teammates following his 6-2, 7-5 win over Ogden's Blake Newman, which clinched the third singles state championship for himself and more importantly, the 3A team state championship for his school.
"This is an amazing feeling," said Groy after his title-clinching match. "I really didn't know that it was down to me, but when everyone rushed the court it hit me that we had just won the state championship, so that was a great feeling."
Park City finished with 14 team points with Dixie and Desert Hills tying for second with 12 points apiece.
Park City found itself in good shape to win it all after the semifinals, holding a narrow two-point lead over Dixie, but with a berth in of all three of its single players in the finals. Dixie, meanwhile, had two berths in the finals and an outside chance of the team championship.
"We knew we'd need one spot to win if Dixie lost (one of its matches) and two if they didn't," said Park City coach Jessica Watts. "It makes sense that it came down to Matt (Groy) because he's always been our staple he's always the guy that pulls through."
Dixie's Tevan Balian got his team off to a great start, defeating Park City's Stefan Dancy in the second singles final 6-4 and 6-1. Balian's victory gave the Flyers a much-needed two points in the team competition, tying Dixie up with Park City with four other final matches to play out.
Desert Hills soon after joined Dixie and Park City with 12 team points following victories in both doubles finals. Mason Ford and Christian Davis defeated Dixie's Luke Heaton and Micah Alba in first doubles 6-1 and 7-6 (7-4) with Clary Hardy and Preston Parmenter taking the second doubles with a 7-5 and 6-2 victory over Hurricane's Shayden Hinton and Karter Beardall.
With Kevin Colopy's match against Juan Diego's Brendan Kempin not going well, it became apparent that it was up to Groy to pull down the outright team championship for the Miners.
Groy cruised in the first set, winning 6-2, but Newman picked up his game in the second set. With Groy holding a 6-5 lead, Newman had the serve and some good momentum, looking to send the set into a tiebreaker.
Newman came up just short, however, losing a lengthy final game that saw the score tied on several occasions.
"It was a tough match and it was really hot out there, but I just kept playing my game," said Groy. "I had no idea that it was up to me and it was probably better that I didn't. I didn't need that added pressure, but I'm so happy to be part of this team."
For Watts, she was proud of all of her players — all of whom played their part in winning the 3A team championship.
"It means the world to (the players), so it means the world to us as their coaches," said Watts. "All of our hard work paid off. All I saw was heart when I looked out there today and that is what it takes to win. They didn't play scared — they played with confidence and with a lot of heart."
In first singles, Juan Diego's Kempin proved equal to his favorite status, taking down Park City's Colopy 7-5 and 6-2.
"It was brutal. I was tired the whole time," said Kempin. "It was close, but it turned out okay."
Email: bgurney@desnews.com