Russell makes history, battles injury at state
Junior Reese Russell became the first Anderson County High School tennis player to qualify for state tournament play.
Russell, a junior and the Mavericks’ No. 1 singles player, became the first player in school history to qualify for the TSSAA Class AA state championships.
He earned his spot by winning both the district and region singles titles in 2025.
At the Spring Fling in Murfreesboro, Russell faced a tough draw in the state quarterfinals, taking on 2024 singles state champion Rich LaLance, a senior from Murfreesboro Siegel.
“Reese played the guy who won state last year,” Anderson County Coach Robert Byers said.
“The Adams Tennis Center is a beautiful outdoor complex, but indoors, where MTSU plays their matches, there are scoreboards with his [LaLance] name all over the place,” he said. “A lot of his family has played there and had success.”
LaLance defeated Russell in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1, but Byers said he was proud of his player’s performance — especially after Russell sustained an injury during the match.
“He hurt his ankle,” Byers said. “You could see the pump knot — it wasn’t on his ankle, it was on his foot. I told him to default if he thought he needed to.”
But Russell, who also plays football for the Mavericks, refused to quit.
“He told me he wasn’t going to stop,” Byers said. “I’m really proud of him. He played very well in that first set. He was serving and volleying well.
“I’ve been working with Reese on that all year. They don’t do a lot of serve-and-volley here, but I knew it was coming back. He had some games in that first set that got to 40. If he hadn’t gotten hurt, I think he might’ve won.”
Even in defeat, Russell left a strong impression on his opponent’s family.
“I talked to LaLance’s dad before the match, and he told me we had a hidden jewel with Reese,” Byers said. “They couldn’t find much on him, and he was really impressed.”
Byers said what stood out most was Russell’s growth and maturity.
“He doesn’t show bad body language anymore,” he said. “He understands that if he misses a shot, it happens, and if he makes one, that’s great, too.”
