From staff reports

COLONIAL PARK -- Last year, Chambersburg's Adam Wennick brought home a boys tennis silver medal playing No. 2 singles at the Mid Penn Class AAA Tournament.

He wasn't about to let that happen again in 2009.

Wennick, the No. 4 seed, battled Cedar Cliff's Jack Bettoil for 3 hours and 30 minutes before finally pulling out a 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2 victory on Monday at Central Dauphin East High School in the No. 2 championship match.

The match started at around 10:30 a.m. and didn't end until 2:05 p.m., and Wennick was all smiles afterward.

"I was completely ecstatic," Wennick said. "After coming in second last year, I really wanted to win this year. By the end, it was just a battle of endurance."

Trojan coach Gary Hocker said, "All the other singles matches were finished and the doubles matches were in the second sets before this one played out. I told Adam I felt he was peaking at the right time and I thought Saturday was the best tennis he played this season.

"He came in with the right mindset after winning silver last year. He was determined not to let that happen again."

When the teams played in the second match of the season, the Colts won 7-0 but Wennick did not face Bettoil, the No. 2 seed known as the Italian Stallion, because he was still involved with the school play.

After losing the first set, Wennick trailed 4-1 in the tiebreaker.

"It was really crazy," he said. "I could tell the fatigue was finally

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starting to set in. It had to be at least 100 degrees out on those courts. He had me 4-1 in the tiebreaker and I told myself to stay in this, I'm not going home second again."

Wennick will continue his season in doubles action at the District 3 Class AAA Tournament. He and teammate Steven Kolumban will play on May 5 at 11:30 a.m. at Cedar Crest High School.

CLASS AA: At East Pennsboro, James Buchanan's No. 1 doubles duo of Seth Gilbert and Jason Cornell had to settle for a silver medal, falling 6-1, 6-1 to the East Pennsboro team of Brice Morey and Andrew Chan.

"They were very good," Rockets coach Terri Beegle said. "Jason and Seth didn't play very well today. They had a lot of unforced errors. But they still have something to be proud of. Silver is not an easy feat in the Mid Penn."