The Hillsboro High School Trojans girls’ tennis team placed fourth out of six teams in the Hillsboro Invitational on Aug. 28. HHS finished behind Wichita Collegiate, Hesston, and Pratt, but ahead of Haven and Nickerson.
Allison Weber’s only loss in No. 1 singles was in the finals against Jaya Mantavani of Wichita Collegiate, 8-4. Weber won both of her matches in pool play, 8-2 over Samantha Stallbaumer of Haven and 8-3 over Brenda Sanchez of Hesston.
“The Collegiate girl, Jaya Mantavani, was tough, but Allison adjusted and started giving her some trouble late in the match,” coach Bob Woelk said. “It was good to play against someone who was such a strong hitter.”
Allison Gray placed fourth in No. 2 singles with a 1-2 record. She defeated Haylee Nachtigal of Haven, 8-5, but lost to Katelyn Hageman of Hesston, 8-2, and Katie Nussbaum of Wichita Collegiate, 8-0.
Erin Winter and Peyton Loewen defeated Amanda Reichenberger and Mary Emile-Wagler of Haven, 8-6, in No. 1 doubles, but lost to Elizabeth Wilder and Caitlin King of Hesston, 8-1, and Lauren McClain and Dani Williams of Pratt, 8-0, to place fourth.
Bailey Kaufman and Claire Heyen started No. 2 doubles with a victory over Annika Miller and Ally Gunn of Haven, 8-4, but lost to Ashylnn Good and Bailey Barker of Hesston, 8-5, and Allicia Hall and Elee Hampton of Pratt, 8-2, to place fourth.
Sterling
Weber improved on her second-place finish at home by winning first place in No. 1 singles Thursday in Sterling. She defeated Joy Fesen of Trinity Catholic of Hutchinson, 7-0, Racheal Davis of St. John, 7-1, and Ryce Stuckey of Sterling, 7-1.
“Stuckey is a good player, but Allison fed her a steady diet of deep shots and really covered the court extremely well,” Woelk said. “We need to continue work on delivering more winners and hitting the ball harder in order to shorten points.”
Gray also improved in No. 2 singles, placing third. She defeated Martesia Tyrus of St. John, 7-3, but lost to Jocelyn Lane of Trinity Catholic, 7-1, and Mac Thrasher of Sterling, 7-3.
“The match (against Thrasher) felt a lot closer,” Woelk said. “Allison made some good shots in that loss.”
Loewen and Winter placed third in No. 1 doubles. They defeated Tyler Dove and Katelyn Spangenberg of St. John, 7-3, but lost to Grace Suter and Katelyn Robinson of Trinity Catholic, 7-5, and Kaci Wilson and Sarah Wheeler of Sterling, 7-5. Both their losses were close enough that a few timely shots could have changed the outcome.
Kaufman and Heyen had a difficult day in No. 2 doubles. They lost to Candace Strawn and Madison Fisher of Trinity Catholic, 7-4, Yvonne Ortiz and Audrey Mercer of St. John, 7-6 with a 7-5 tiebreaker, and Emma Lambert and Shelbi Fenwick of Sterling, 7-2.