Double forfeit in CIF tennis

There was plenty of well-played tennis last Thursday and Friday at the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Div. III singles and doubles championships that were contested at Oak Park in Stockton.However, much of the attention that the Div. III tournament drew last week came from a match that wasn't played.In what is thought to be an unprecedented move by the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section, the CIF vacated the boys Div. III singles champion and runner-up spots after a pair of Placer High players, Dan Fraguglia and Andy Riggs, who were supposed to play in Friday's singles championship match, decided to double default to each other.According to Placer High tennis coach Tom Isaac, there was no intent to belittle the section in anyway.Isaac noted that after a long day of tennis last Friday, Riggs had injured his shoulder. Isaac then asked tournament director Tom Brooks of River City if Riggs and Fraguglia could play the singles championship either Saturday or Monday in Auburn.When told that it would be all right, the Auburn coach and his netters headed home.However, on the way home, Riggs noted that because of the injury that he would go ahead and default to Fraguglia. In turn, according to Issac, Fraguglia decided that he did not want to win by default and that he would go ahead and double default along with Riggs.However, that is where the situation starts to get sticky."We don't move championship matches in team sports unless it's because of weather," said assistant Sac-Joaquin commissioner John Williams. "There have been times when we have allowed tennis to move things because of injury or darkness but not to double default."However, when notified that the Placer players decided to double default, the section called Placer athletic director Mark Lee on Monday and requested the championship and runners-up medals to be returned."This default was more a gesture of sportsmanship," said Issac who drove the medals back to the section office in Lodi. "The CIF talks about winning with dignity but that wasn't how this was handled."In matches that were played, Colfax sent singles and doubles players to Friday's semi-final round but the Falcons were denied any section championship crowns.Colfax junior Heidi Graves saw her run come to an end in the semifinals when she fell to eventual girls champion Kaitlyn Brayton of Escalon 6-0, 6-1. Colfax's Justin Witt and Josh Parker also fell in the semifinals. They lost to Marysville's Chue Xiong and Jer Xiong, 7-5, 6-3.Graves had breezed through her first matches Thursday to advance to today's semifinals at Oak Park.In boys doubles action, Colfax's Witt and Parker advanced to the semis.