CARY– The Mount Airy team of Mitch Kessler and Eric Belton survived a pair of tough three-set doubles matches on Friday to advance to the championship in the North Carolina High School Athletic Association state 1-A tennis championships at the Cary Tennis Center.

The Mount Airy duo defeated Brackin Kirkland and Charles Colhoun of Hendersonville in the semifinals in a third-set tiebreaker, 7-5, 2-6, 7-6(5), after outlasting Alex Dunham and Jordan Deloatch of Raleigh Charter in a three-set match on Friday morning.

Kessler and Belton will face Kevin Weckworth and Joseph Riazzi of Kernersville Bishop McGuinness for the doubles title.

Russell Turner of Durham’s North Carolina School of Science and Math will square off against Elkin’s Tyler Macy for the singles championship on Saturday morning. They each won their two matches in straight sets and each lost only four games in the process. 

Macy was the 2010 singles runner-up, losing to Mount Airy’s Nicholas John in last year’s championship.

Action is scheduled to start at the Cary Tennis Center at nine o’clock Saturday morning.

NORTH CAROLINA HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION

1-A STATE MEN’S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS

CARY TENNIS CENTER

Singles–Quarterfinals

Russell Turner (Durham N.C. School of Science and Math) def. Ben Brewer-Bowman (Hendersonville) 6-1, 6-0; Matt Kessler (Mount Airy) def. Joseph Bannerman (Pender) 6-1, 6-0; Tyler Macy (Elkin) def. Tom Stainback (Ayden-Grifton) 6-1, 6-1; Naveed Foroudi (Kernersville Bishop McGuinness) def. Kevin Huang (Durham N.C. School of Science and Math) 6-4, 6-1.

Singles–Semifinals

Turner (NCSSM) def. Kessler (Mount Airy) 6-2, 6-1; Macy (Elkin) def. Foroudi (Bishop McGuinness) 6-1, 6-1.

Singles Championship–Saturday 9 am

Russell Turner (Durham N.C. School of Science and Math) vs. Tyler Macy (Elkin)

Doubles–Quarterfinals

Jonathan Tseng-Houston Parks (Raleigh Charter) def. Jeremy Bauguess-Kelly Calloway (East Wilkes) 6-4, 3-6, 6-3; Kevin Weckworth-Joseph Riazzi (Kernersville Bishop McGuinness) def. Trae Bagley-Caleb Woolard (Riverside-Martin) 6-0, 6-1; Brackin Kirkland-Charles Colhoun (Hendersonville) def. Justin Harden-Andrew Wu (Durham N.C. School of Science and Math) 6-1, 6-0; Mitch Kessler-Eric Belton (Mount Airy) def. Alex Dunham-Jordan Deloatch (Raleigh Charter) 6-1, 3-6, 6-4.

Doubles-Semifinals

Weckworth-Riazzi (Bishop McGuinness) def. Tseng-Parks (Raleigh Charter) 6-2, 6-1; Kessler-Belton (Mount Airy) def. Kirkland-Colhoun (Hendersonville) 7-5, 2-6, 7-6(5). 

Doubles Championship– Saturday 9 am

Kevin Weckworth-Joseph Riazzi (Kernersville Bishop McGuinness) vs. Mitch Kessler-Eric Belton (Mount Airy)