The Williamstown girls tennis team is seeking the program’s first state title this week at the state meet in Charleston. Pictured, from left, are head coach Diana Leo, Avery Rusk, Cadence Bland, Laci Moore, Addison Woodburn, Lauren Deem, Gabi Holl, Hailey Barnes, Peyton Woodburn, Ashtyn McIntyre and assistant coach Amy Strobl. (Photo Provided)

PARKERSBURG — Walk inside the new gym at Williamstown High School and gaze at all the sports banners noting past state champions.

However, there is one sport remaining where a state title has eluded the Yellowjackets, and this weekend the girls tennis team is determined to complete the list.

Thursday’s quarterfinal and semifinal rounds of the team format for Class AA/A marks the beginning of the state tennis tournament in Charleston. Friday’s schedule opens with the finals of the team duals followed by the individual brackets for both singles and doubles over the course of two days.

“It would be fantastic to finally win a girls state championship in tennis for the first time in school history,” Williamstown coach Diana Leo said. “Girls tennis is the only banner in our new gym that doesn’t have a year listed.”

Riding the firetruck through the community of Williamstown is the culmination of any Yellowjacket athletic team returning with a state title. This year marks the 45th year of the girls tennis program at the school. Last year, the Yellowjackets came within one win of making history before falling to Chapmanville 4-3 in the finals.

The Williamstown boys tennis team seeks a fourth state title in five years this week at the state meet in Charleston. Pictured, from left, are assistant coach Amy Strobl, assistant coach Jeremy Woodard, Brady Anderson, Issac Harris, Bradyn Woodard, Gavin Hill, Noah Mourat, AJ Kitchen and head coach Diana Leo. (Photo Provided)

Williamstown will have to contend with the likes of Logan, Chapmanville and Charleston Catholic. On the boys side, the Yellowjackets haven’t gone head-to-head with Charleston Catholic, but these two schools figure to have the final say in terms of how the field plays out. Both the Yellowjacket boys and girls are battle-tested. They both played seven Class AAA schools during the regular season. The boys finished 5-2, while the girls had a mark of 4-3.

The Williamstown boys have a strong state pedigree, having won a state title three of the past four years.

“All the kids have followed the gameplan – they are so competitive, they don’t want to lose,” Leo said. “In the regional, they did that very well.”

Once the team format is completed, the doubles and singles brackets take center stage. The Williams boys qualified two entries in both the singles and doubles field. For the girls, they will field two doubles teams as well along with one singles entry.

Wood County Christian freshman Ellie Piatt is also making history – becoming the first Wildcat to qualify for the state tournament after finishing runner-up to Addison Woodburn in the regional finals last week in Morgantown.

Piatt won 8-2 in the quarterfinals to secure her spot for Charleston.

“Ellie was very excited after she won that match,” said her mother Susan Piatt, who is also the coach at WCCS. “It’s kind of neat because it’s never been done before at the school. We don’t know how it will play out. She will go out and do her best, and see how it goes.

“Now we are seeing the fruits of her labor.”

With her mother having a background playing college tennis, Ellie Piatt first picked up a racquet when she was 4. Susan Piatt remembers that day.

“I definitely saw she had good potential,” her mother said. “When she was young, she played soccer, softball and a lot of basketball – she has narrowed it down to pretty much basketball and tennis. As far as tennis, it was about trusting the process. From a young age, she was taught the correct way to play tennis.”

The 8-4 defeat to Woodburn in the regional finals was the first loss in 14 singles matches this year for Ellie.

“This has been years and years in the making,” Susan Piatt said. “It’s not like it happened in one year and she is doing awesome. It’s been a lot of hard work.”

Whether she runs into Williamstown at state remains to be seen. Woodburn is the top seed in the girls’ field of 16. She will join her sister Peyton as the top seed in the field of eight for doubles. Teammates Ashtyn McIntyre and Gabi Holl are seeded third.

On the boys side in doubles, Bradyn Woodard and Isaac Harris and teammates Gavin Hill and Brady Anderson are legitimate contenders to reach the finals.

Woodard and Hill are also on a path for a deep run in singles.

“Our doubles teams are pretty consistently,” Leo said. “As a team, the way we line up our singles – they are strategically placed and have been since the beginning of the year.”

Contact Kerry Patrick at kpatrick@newsandsentinel.com