Childress/Trussell split pair at State

6:18 p.m. May 22, 2025

DUANE CROSS
MCO Publisher•Editor

The Moore County High School boys' doubles team of Neal Childress and Logan Trussell made an impressive showing at the Class 1A State Tennis Tournament during Spring Fling on Thursday, May 22, in Murfreesboro.

The duo defeated Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences’ Owen Burke and Malhar Rathod 6-3, 6-2 in the quarterfinals to advance to the semifinals.

In a tightly contested semifinal match, Childress and Trussell fell to Scotts Hill’s Patrick Lewis and Marcus Bielinski, 4-6, 5-7, ending their postseason run.

For Trussell, the trip to state came in just his first year of playing tennis.

“Logan is a first-year player who’s only been practicing for nine months,” MCHS coach Manny Buchanan said. “This is a testament to his work ethic – and to Neal’s ability to coach him up.”

Childress, a senior, has been involved in tennis for six years. After giving up soccer and cross country to focus solely on tennis, he trained extensively, including lessons, college camps, and time at the prestigious Rick Macci Tennis Academy in Florida, where Venus and Serena Williams once trained.

“Neal is a student of the game,” Buchanan said. “He shared that love of the game with his buddy Logan. And if you ask Logan’s parents, they’ll tell you – he called it nine months ago. He said, ‘I’m going to play tennis, and me and Neal are going to State.’ ”

The duo’s trip to the semifinals marks another milestone for what has been the most successful era in Moore County tennis history.

Since Childress and fellow seniors Anna Harder and Audrey Harder joined the varsity team as freshmen, both the boys’ and girls’ teams have won four consecutive district titles. Over that stretch, the girls’ team never lost a district match and collected signature wins over much larger programs.

“This is the winningest group in Moore County Tennis history,” Buchanan said. “People say you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone – but I knew six years ago we had something special.”

The Spring Fling crowd included 20 to 30 Moore County supporters, making the atmosphere electric. Buchanan gave a special shoutout to longtime supporter and team “granny” Janice Harder, who has cheered on the program for the past six years.

Looking ahead, the Raiders return just one starter on each team – rising junior Maddie Sparkman for the girls and rising senior Trussell for the boys.

While many might see next season as a rebuilding year, Buchanan remains optimistic. “If the rest of the team takes on Logan’s mentality, we could be making another trip to state,” he said.