Felix Xu will vouch for that.

The Hollidaysburg Area High School senior boys tennis tandem of Xu and Garrett Bouchard won the District 4-6 Class 3A doubles championship for the second straight spring on Wednesday afternoon at the Summit Tennis and Athletic Club, defeating the State College team of junior Evan Zhang and Jude Cessna in straight sets, 7-5, 6-2.

“Last year, we won our first one together, and this year, there was more pressure and expectations,” Xu said of himself and Bouchard. “Plus, we expected more from ourselves this year, because we’ve had another year to grow. This was a great experience.”

Xu and Bouchard entered the tournament as its top-seeded team, while Zhang and Cessna were the second-seeded team.

Hollidaysburg coach Brian Denis talks to Felix Xu (left) and Garrett Bouchard during a break in action Wednesday afternoon. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

Xu and Bouchard grinded out a 7-5 victory in the first set, then clinched the match with the decisive 6-2 triumph in the second set.

“I think that’s about the highest level of performance that those two have shown in all the time they have played together,” Hollidaysburg coach Brian Denis said. “They made very few mistakes today and they were constantly applying pressure to the State College team.

“Our team also made a very high percentage of its serves – they served very well,” Denis added.

It was the third straight year that Bouchard appeared in the district doubles final, where, two years ago as a sophomore, he and another Hollidaysburg player lost. But Bouchard said that all the experience in the three straight championship matches has helped him immensely.

“Obviously, being in the finals three straight years, I am able to play under pressure,” Bouchard said. “And being able to win two years in a row feels good.”

Bouchard felt that the play of Xu and himself around the net was crucial in Wednesday’s outcome.

“We played well around the net, especially making first serves,” Bouchard said. “And, playing indoors, that’s especially important, and it helped us win today.”

Bouchard and Xu have played together in both scholastic and travel competition, and they’re familiar teammates who both feel comfortable playing as a team.

“We’ve played many tournaments, district tournament matches, and practice matches together, and we’re very comfortable playing together,” Bouchard said. “He has a great forehand and a great serve, and especially today, he was super at the net.”

Xu, who was playing Wednesday with an ankle issue, had similar accolades for Bouchard.

“I had a sore ankle, and Garrett is a great player who carried the load this time around,” Xu said. “He was great at the net, where normally I would cover, but he took that on his shoulders today. And we made some nice high lobs to get us out of trouble and keep them on the defensive.”

State College coach Jane Borden said that she was proud of the Zhang-Cessna team.

“I’m very proud of Evan and Jude — they both do well academically and athletically,” Borden said. “Hollidaysburg is a great team, and they played great doubles today, but when you double-fault 20 times like we did today, you don’t stand a very good chance of winning the match.”

The Bouchard-Xu team — which won three straight matches to take the district championship — will now represent Hollidaysburg in the PIAA Class 3A boys doubles championships for the second straight year. The team will open play on Friday, May 22 at the Hershey Racquet Club.

Bouchard and Xu lost to eventual state finalist Dallastown in a first-round match at last May’s state tournament, but Denis is looking for the team to make some strides at this year’s state tournament.

“Every team down there will be a good team, but it would be great if we could finish among the top eight teams this year,” Denis said. “Last year, being that it was their first year at the state tournament, I think that they were a little nervous. But now they’re playing with smooth confidence, and I definitely expect them to do better at this year’s state tournament.”

In the District 6 Class 2A doubles finals, Westmont Hilltop’s Brett Hoffman and John Allen defeated Westmont Hilltop’s Conner Selders and Ethan Downey, 6-4, 6-2.