The Mount Airy boys tennis team played so well Tuesday it got to go home early.

With yesterday’s 6-0 win over Albemarle, the Granite Bears moved into the semifinals of the state 1A team tournament against either Hendersonville or Highland Tech May 19.

With a 6-0 lead after singles play, both teams decided to forego the inevitable and not continue on to doubles matches. The win, however, was not as easy as the score would indicate. Nick John disposed of Akash Dadlani, 6-0, 6-4, but the Bulldogs’ Dadlani happens to be last season’s singles runner-up in 1A.

“Nick had a good match again,” Mount Airy coach Frank Mayberry said. “I thought everybody came out really focused and played well.”

Despite the pleasant surprise of Matt Kessler winning the Northwest 1A singles title, Mayberry has stuck with the same lineup for the entire season. His reasons are simple and hard to argue with.

“We played all year with this same lineup,” he said. “At this point in the game, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to mess around with it. If you look at the results, we’ve done well with this lineup. We’re going to stick with it.”

Mount Airy (14-2) has yet to lose a match to competition below 4A this season. Because of a rotating system that ensures home-court advantage to certain teams every year, the Granite Bears will be traveling to either Hendersonville or Highland Tech. In what has become an annual meeting in the state tournament, Mount Airy traveled to Hendersonville last season, while the Bearcats came to Mount Airy two years ago.

Mount Airy 6,

Albermarle 0

Singles

Nick John (MA) d. Akash Dadlani, 6-0, 6-4

Brooks Mayberry (MA) d. D.J. Guenther, 6-3, 6-0

Chance Hall (MA) d. Steven Edwards, 6-2, 6-3

Matt Kessler (MA) d. Daniel Owens, 6-1, 6-0

Eric Belton (MA) d. Purich Transertratkul, 6-4, 6-4

Alex Ilyasov (MA) d. Chris McLauren, 6-4, 6-0