To the editor:

The Laurel High School tennis team under the coaching of Jeff Davis, won the South State 4A Tennis Championship at the Laurel Sportsplex on Friday, May 2. This is a great accomplishment for this team and is the result of many years of training and practice.

While this win will be savored for months and years to come and the anticipation of playing for the State 4A Championship in Jackson on May 7th is high, even a greater thing happened at the Sportsplex on May 2.

Laurel’s Head Football Coach Milton Smith when hearing of Coach Davis’ plea for fan support for the tennis match, told all of his players at spring practice on Thursday that the tennis team deserved their support . Instead of Friday practice, he told them he expected them to come and support the Laurel tennis team, most of whom followed the Laurel tootball team throughout their championship season. Almost every football coach and many of the football players were on the sidelines cheering for their Laurel High School classmates, watching them play a sport that many of them did not understand.

No one was more excited over the win than Scott Dodd, head of LHS security. On the sidelines were Coach Williams, the boys’ basketball coach and Coach Martinez, boys’ soccer coach. The Laurel School District Office closed its doors early and Dr. McGee and his staff came out in mass support of the tennis team.

The support of the faculty, staff, administration and students in attendance was a meaningful show of Tornado solidarity. From barely a handful of supporters at most matches, the Laurel fan base increased to over 100 in attendance at the match. It surpassed any boundaries of race, of “large” sports versus “small” sports; it was truly a great day for the Laurel High School tennis players and parents, a day most of us will not soon forget. Perhaps it carried the motto of this year’s championship football team to a new level, from “One Team, One Goal,” to “One School, One Goal.”

I know I speak on behalf of all the students on the Laurel High School tennis team and their parents when I extend a heartfelt thank you to the Tornado family for sharing in our victory.

— Lisa Purdum

Laurel