Tuloso-Midway, Flour Bluff Reach UIL Tennis State Semis

Two Corpus Christi-area high school tennis programs punched tickets to the UIL state tournament on Friday, with one making history and the other cementing a return to elite status in Texas team tennis.

Tuloso-Midway became the first program in its history to reach the UIL Class 4A state tournament after dismantling Fredericksburg 10-5 in the Region IV-4A final at the Annemarie Tennis Center in San Antonio. The Warriors, ranked No. 2, swept through singles play and dominated doubles to eliminate a Fredericksburg squad that had been considered a formidable regional contender.

Flour Bluff secured its spot back in the Class 5A state semifinals with an 11-2 rout of Boerne at the San Antonio Blossom Center. The Hornets won every girls singles match they played and posted a flawless 6-0, 6-0 victory in mixed doubles behind Ignacio Prado and Katelyn Schoene.

The road to the state championship now funnels entirely through San Antonio for both squads. Tuloso-Midway will compete in the Class 4A state semifinals Wednesday at the Northside Tennis Center, with the championship matches scheduled for Thursday. Flour Bluff’s Class 5A semifinal and championship matches will take place Wednesday and Thursday at the Annemarie Tennis Center.

Texas high school team tennis operates under a unique dual-meet format governed by the University Interscholastic League. Unlike individual bracket tournaments where players compete solely for personal titles, UIL team tennis aggregates points across boys singles, girls singles, boys doubles, girls doubles, and — in Class 5A and 6A — mixed doubles. A team needs to secure a majority of available points to win the tie, which forces programs to build deep rosters rather than relying on one or two star players.

That depth was evident in Tuloso-Midway’s performance. The Warriors swept all four girls singles matches against Fredericksburg. Tristen Dowless, Audrey Arango, Anaiah Lazo, and Abcde Gutierrez each won their respective matchups, with Gutierrez securing her victory in a third-set super tiebreaker after dropping the second set. On the boys side, Gabriel Gonzalez and Gustavo Rodriguez each won twice, pairing together for a 6-2, 6-4 doubles victory before winning their individual singles matches. Ethan Molina added another boys singles point.

Flour Bluff’s dominance over Boerne highlighted the structural differences between UIL classifications. Because Class 5A includes mixed doubles, the Hornets had more opportunities to accumulate points, and they capitalized across the entire lineup. Mark Ferrand and Hudson Morales survived a three-set battle in boys doubles, winning the deciding super tiebreaker 10-7, while Brayden McNabb and Brycen Morales handled their opponents in straight sets. In girls doubles, Victoria Torres paired with Sabrina Laguna for a straight-sets win, and Lola Fabela teamed with Vivianna Delgado for another decisive victory. Hudson Morales, Torres, Laguna, Alessandra Dalton, and Delgado all won their singles matches without dropping more than three games in any single set.

The geographic concentration of the state tournament venues in San Antonio reflects the city’s infrastructure as the traditional hub for the UIL tennis championships. The Northside Tennis Center and Annemarie Tennis Center provide the court capacity required to host simultaneous semifinal and championship ties across multiple classifications, drawing teams from all four UIL regions.

Both programs advanced out of Region IV, which covers South Texas and the Coastal Bend. Historically, teams from this region have faced steep competition from Central Texas and Dallas-Fort Worth programs once they reach the state bracket, making the semifinal matchups a significant step up in overall roster depth and competitive intensity.

Tuloso-Midway will open its inaugural state tournament appearance Wednesday at the Northside Tennis Center. Flour Bluff begins its Class 5A semifinal run the same day at the Annemarie Tennis Center.