Friendship leads Panther Creek duo in quest for rare 4-peat in NCHSAA doubles

At first glance, it’s easy to know why Panther Creek’s Sammi Smith and Jordan Strickland are undefeated as a senior doubles tandem. Smith is the top-ranked singles player in the state; Strickland is No. 3.

But this weekend, the two will go for a milestone, trying to become the second duo to win four straight N.C. High School Athletic Association 4A doubles championships.

To do that, they’ve needed more than talent. Otherwise those titles as freshmen and sophomores wouldn’t have happened against older players.

Strickland and Smith met on a tennis court when they were 7. Their coach was passionate about the sport, and it rubbed off quickly. They have a togetherness that only comes with a long-lasting friendship.

They’ve been playing long enough to have an unspoken language on the court, not that they would use it. Their on-court conversation is ongoing. As Panther Creek coach Nathaniel Blalock says, “The louder we are on the doubles court, the more successful we’re going to be.”

“They communicate really well on the court, and that’s always been true,” Blalock said. “They’re both such friendly girls and they’re both so personable that that friendship kind of extended to the court. I think that’s what sort of separates them.”

Smith, 18, is “the spark” said Blalock. “The little engine that could.”

The Penn State recruit brings the intensity, poaching at the net and dealing a powerful serve. She’s more fired up than Strickland.

But Strickland, 17, may talk more. The Western Carolina recruit is the play-caller, directing how the match is going to go and what adjustments need to be made.

They balance each out perfectly.

“I’m typically the louder one on the court, but we communicate really well,” Smith said. “We kind of know each other’s movements and what we’re going to do and what kind of shots we’re going to hit in certain scenarios.

“We know what to expect from each other and we know how to calm each other down if we’re in a tight situation,” said Strickland.

If it wasn’t for Sammi’s older sister, Megan, who knows if the two would have teamed up as freshmen. Megan, who plays at UNC Charlotte, was a junior at the time and chose to play singles in the state tournament.

Sammi didn’t want to play her sister, so she and Strickland teamed up. There were no expectations at that time.

“No one really expected freshmen to succeed as much as we did,” Smith said. “We knew we could be competitive at all the tournaments, but we never knew what it would lead to.”

Only one doubles team – Fayetteville Terry Sanford’s Lisa Monaco and Margit Monaco from 1977-80 – has won four straight doubles championships. Smith and Strickland talked about trying to pull off the four-peat as they entered their sophomore year, and the pressure has intensified.

“I think we’re a little nervous. We have to be confident and play our game. There’s good competition every year,” Strickland said. “It would be pretty unreal to accomplish something that’s only been done once.”

After the championships, Panther Creek will have three more matches to win if it wants a third straight NCHSAA 4A team title. Then, the duo will go their separate ways.

But they’ll always be together in the NCHSAA history books.

“It’ll be kind ofweird (next year) when we’re playing a team and we’re playing doubles, but not together,” Smith said. “But it’s been a lot of fun.”

This story was originally published October 29, 2015 at 8:55 PM with the headline "Friendship leads Panther Creek duo in quest for rare 4-peat in NCHSAA doubles."