By Chris McCarthy/ Publisher/Editor
Charley Rowe’s decision to focus on tennis as his primary high school sport proved to be a wise one.
On May 14, the Westbrook Christian senior signed a letter of intent to with Birmingham Southern College.
Rowe put together a great run in the Class 1A-3A state tournament last month, winning three straight matches before falling in the No. 1 singles championship. His performance helped the Warriors finish eighth overall.
Rowe made it to the semifinal round his junior season and the quarterfinals as a sophomore.
Rowe noted that he started playing seriously around age nine or 10 with his older brothers S.P. and Coston as competition. Rowe has been starting on the Westbrook varsity since his seventh grade year, steadily working his way up from the No. 4 singles position to the top spot his sophomore season. He also played the No. 2 doubles position as a 10th grader.
“Ever since I started, I always worked towards playing at the next level, so today is pretty exciting,” said Rowe, who plans on studying business. “I really love the atmosphere at Birmingham Southern, and I kind of fell in love with the campus.”
This past season, Birmingham Southern finished 12-5 overall and 4-2 in Southern Athletic Association action.
“Charley was our captain this year and was a tremendous leader for us,” said Westbrook tennis coach Beth Dial. “He’s just a fine, Christian young man that been such a good role model, especially for our younger players.
“Charley always was around when his brothers played here, so it seems like Charley’s been here forever. I think he’ll do a fine job at Birmingham Southern.”