Coupeville’s Aaron Curtin earned his second straight trip to the state 1A tennis tournament by placing second in singles in the second day of the District 3 tournament Friday, Oct. 31, at the Lakewood Racquet Club.

Curtin fell in the finals 6-3, 6-2 to last year’s second-place finisher at state, Charles Wright’s Griffin Welsh.

Coupeville’s other players in the tournament, Sebastian Davis and the doubles team of Loren Nelson and Connor McCormick, suffered their second loss of the meet in the first match Saturday and were eliminated. Each could have placed as high as third by winning out.

Coupeville coach Ken Stange said Curtin put up “a monstrous fight” while playing “some of the best tennis of his life.”

Curtin qualified for state last year in doubles with then-senior Ben Etzell.

“Qualifying for state in doubles is one thing, but earning a state berth in singles is a much more difficult proposition,” Stange said. “He beat some tough players, and he gave the champ some stiff competition.”

Davis placed fifth, losing 6-2, 6-0 in the consolation bracket to Vashon Island’s Steen Jennings, who went on to finish third.

The district tournament was a “valuable experience” for Davis, Stange said. “Next year, he’ll be the guy who is vying for a state berth instead of settling for fifth.”

Nelson and McCormick lost 6-3, 6-0 to an Eatonville team.

“In their first full year playing varsity doubles, they managed to qualify for districts,” Stange said. “Like Sebastian, they gained valuable experience in seeing the quality of play at the higher-level tourneys. Next year, they will likely make an impact at districts.”

“All in all, this was a pretty spectacular district tourney for CHS,” Stange said. “All three of our entrants won at least one match, and we even qualified a singles player for state, the first time I’ve had back-to-back state appearances in my 19 seasons of coaching the boys and girls.”