Mary Weston Courville helps Team Georgia take Junior Cup

Columbus High tennis player Mary Weston Courville said she hoped to help Team Georgia stretch its win streak in the Icy Hot Junior Cup to 24. Over the weekend, Courville played an important role in the team doing just that.

Courville performed well in the three-day tournament held in Chattanooga, Tenn., posting a 5-3 match record as Team Georgia won yet again. Courville and doubles partner Anne Marie Hiser punched the team’s ticket to the finals round, winning their match 7-5 against opponents from Team North Carolina.

“It was so great to be able to keep the win streak for Georgia,” Courville said. “South Carolina was as strong as they have ever been, and most people thought this was the year Georgia would finally get beat. It was so amazing to keep the streak going, especially because of how tight all the matches were this year.”

Team Georgia got off to a great start Friday, easily handling Team Kentucky 25-2 and Team Tennessee 21-6 to advance to the Gold division of the tournament against North Carolina and South Carolina. Saturday’s single matches were highly contested, with Team Georgia going 9-9 against Team North Carolina and 10-8 versus Team South Carolina.

Sunday’s doubles matches were just as tight, which is when Courville and Hiser came up clutch. With Team Georgia and Team North Carolina tied 13-13, the Peach State duo duked it out and ultimately came out with a two-game victory.

“It was very nerve racking, but we were both so excited to pull off the win,” Courville said.

From there, Team Georgia won four matches over Team South Carolina to extend its dominance in the tournament.

When she was selected to participate, Courville spoke about it being an honor. She said it was a big deal to play in the Junior Cup, particularly for a state that has had so much success in it.

Courville’s experience as well as her play lived up to the tremendous buildup that surrounded the moment.

“It was one of the most fun, competitive tournaments I’ve ever experienced,” Courville said.

This story was originally published September 20, 2017 at 10:42 AM with the headline "Mary Weston Courville helps Team Georgia take Junior Cup."