Matthew Richards continued his streak as one of Sequim’s ace tennis players last weekend.

After earning his fourth trip to districts, Richards took fifth overall in the 2A boys’ singles and qualified for a state berth on Oct. 30-31 at the Kitsap Tennis & Athletic Center in Bremerton.

In his first matchup, he won 6-0 in two sets over Kaden Phillips of White River.

He lost his second match-up to Marek Pierepiekarz of Liberty, who went on to take third, 6-3 in two sets, but Richards didn’t lose a head-to-head again.

In the consolation he defeated Cameron Dubos of Bremerton 1-6, 6-2, 14-12, and Colby Vuong of Liberty 6-2, 6-3 to advance to the consolation finals against Port Angeles’ Jansen Pederson.

For fifth place, Richards won 6-3, 6-2 over Pederson.

One of his toughest opponents of the season, Tye Loan of Olympic, took first in the tournament.

Due to scheduling, Richards will play at the 2A state tournament in the spring.

Richards, a Sequim native, said he’s been playing about eight years following the lead of his mom Branette, who has played most of her life. He began playing with his friend Karen Chan one summer and hasn’t stopped since.

Tennis quickly became Richards’ go-to-sport, he said, but he did play two seasons of soccer for Sequim High his freshman and sophomore years. He likes tennis and likely will play it or some form of it like pickleball or ping pong for the rest of his life, he says.

Richards kindly answered some Random Questions about tennis and many other things.

Question 6: What’s your favorite animal?

Richards: A Siberian tiger. It’s epic. I’ve always had a fascination with tigers. I’m not really sure why. I think their eyes are so big.

Question 14: Who would you most like to buy dinner for?

Richards: My mother because I love her and she’s always been there for me.

Bonus Question 1: How did your high school tennis career go?

Richards: I’ve gone to districts four times in a row. My freshman year, I was on a doubles team with Brandon Payne and we lost. My sophomore year, we made it to state. My junior year I made it to districts but lost in the (state) qualifying match.

Bonus Question 2: What’s your favorite part of Sequim?

Richards: I really enjoy the climate here. I do like heat but I’m not really crazy about hot weather. I really enjoy the variety of activities and I like to hike and go on runs. I like having the small town feeling because I’m not into big cities.

Question 35: Do you own any pets?

Richards: A chihuahua named Chica and a cat named Smokey.

Question 38: If you could thank one person, who would you thank?

Richards: Justine (Wagner, tennis head coach) for being an awesome coach and a great road companion. On the way to state we had some good times.

Bonus Question 3: What’s your favorite part of playing tennis for Sequim High?

Richards: I like the coaches. Mark Textor (assistant coach) was my coach freshman year and Justine has been doing it since then. They’re both really good coaches. We all have a lot of fun at practices, too.

Question 50: What is the greatest driving song ever?

Richards: “The Distance” by Cake but I like the cover by Relient K, one of  my favorite bands.

Bonus Question 4: Do you plan to go to college?

Richards: I think either the University of Washington or Seattle Pacific University.

In Random Questions, members of the community each draw five random questions (sometimes more) out of 50 from a bag and he/she will answer these questions for your entertainment. With suggestions for random interviews, e-mail Matthew Nash at mnash@sequimgazette.com.