Coronado's Thomas Mann, Daniel Warraich endure marathon day to advance to state tournament

After how far he and his partner Daniel Warraich had come, Thomas Mann wasn't going to let cramps stop them.

In the Coronado duo's second match Thursday at the Region I-5A tournament, Mann hit the ground with calf cramps in both legs. The Mustangs led 5-3 in the first set with a state-tournament berth on the line. Downing electrolyte drinks and fruits during court changes, Mann gutted through.

Warraich made sure to end things in the nick of time.

With Mann grounded again 15 games later, Warraich provided the match-sealing point to top Lubbock-Cooper's Caleb Bradshaw and Asher Etchison 7-6 (5), 7-5. The playback victory secured Coronado's boys doubles spot in San Antonio.

"For Daniel to finish it like he did, when Thomas is on the ground, is incredible," Mustangs tennis coach Sara Boney said. "It just shows what a team they are."

It was a long-awaited moment for Mann and Warraich. Last year's run ended with a medical default in the third-place match at regionals after Mann reaggravated a knee injury. Boney said she had "small flashbacks" to last season, but Mann wouldn't let the situation repeat itself.

"It was cramping, but it was playable," Mann said. "Then the second-to-last point I had full leg cramps. I knew at that point we were either winning the next point or losing (the match). It was a good fight."

It was Coronado's second two-hour match following a three-set thriller to kick off the day. Argyle's Carter Holt and Austin Lewis won the final 6-2, 4-6, 7-6 (3), and Bradshaw and Etchison won the third-place match over Justin Northwest's duo to set up the playback.

It was a rematch of the District 4-5A championship that went Coronado's way in three sets. The Mustangs finished with three wins over the Pirates this season, but Boney said "it's incredibly close every single time they play."

The teams are more than cordial, too. Bradshaw provided a racket for Mann mid-match after the latter broke two strings on his original. Boney said the move showed Cooper's character.

"(Bradshaw) is such an amazing guy," Mann said. "Me and him are friends off the court. It's so amazing to see how he's able to have so much heart. I even get emotional talking about it. It was so nice."

So Bradshaw and Etchison will likely cheer for their friends when Coronado competes in the state tournament next Thursday.

"From the last match that we lost last year," Warraich said, "we've been working towards it throughout the whole season. … The last few weeks we've just been working really hard to get to this point."

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Region I-5A tennis: Coronado's Thomas Mann, Daniel Warraich make state