Newport sending singles, doubles to state tennis | Prep sports news

The Knights look like strong favorites to make it three straight team titles, and could grab a singles or doubles championship in the process.

Newport will have a strong chance to make it three straight team scoring state titles in May at the 4A boys tennis championships, after the Knights captured singles and doubles titles at the KingCo tournament.

Jason Lui won the singles bracket to qualify for state and will take the top seed to Columbia Basin Racquet Club in Richland May 30 and 31.

After a bye in the first round, Lui took care of competitors from Skyline, Garfield and finally Jack Suh of Issaquah to make the title match. After dropping the first set 2-6 with a title on the line, Lui rebounded to win the next two sets 6-1, 6-2 to take the singles championship and punch his ticket to state.

Matt Sham and Austin Gu beat teammates Kelvin Yuchen and Ryan Cheung for the title after both stormed through the bracket to make the final match.

Sham and Gu won three matches in straight sets to reach the finals, while Yuchen and Cheung won four straight before falling 3-6, 6-2, 6-3. They quickly bounced back to win the second place match and earn their own state spot while again facing a pair of teammates in Derek Huang and Alex Namba.

Huang and Namba can make it seven Knights at state in the spring with a win over the 4A Wesco third-place doubles finisher in the crossover match.

Boys doubles has belonged to Newport at state for each of the past two seasons, as Dylan Harlow and Matt Sham won a match over teammates David An and Namba in last year’s state final. Sham and Allen Kim were third in 2012, while Chris Lilley and Dylan Harlow finished third, beating teammates Alec Tsutsumoto and Andrew Choi, who were sixth.