HILLSBORO: Tennis squad struggles at Circle, Collegiate
Any time you face last year's state champions, you're bound to have a tough day.
Combine that with a fairly inexperienced team, and the situation gets even tougher.
That was the situation the Hillsboro High School girls' tennis team found themselves in Tuesday evening, as they visited Wichita for the Collegiate Invitational.
The event featured competition from much larger schools such as Newton, Wellington, and Goddard.
It was an evening of adjustments for the Lady Trojans, as head coach Lynn Wiebe shuffled the lineup a bit. She kept the same No. 1 doubles duo, but most other players found themselves in new roles.
This time, it was Marci Wodke in the No. 1 singles position. In pool play, Wodke lost to Goddard 8-1 and Neodesha 8-5. In the fifth place match, she lost to Collegiate 8-3.
No. 2 singles player Mallory Blecha also struggled, losing to Goddard 8-0 and Neodesha 8-1. She lost in the fifth place match to Wellington 8-0.
The No. 1 doubles duo of Candace Barkman and Erin Wiebe struggled as well, losing to Goddard 8-1 and Neodesha 8-0. But they came back in the fifth place match to defeat 4A Wellington 8-6.
In No. 2 doubles, the team of Angie Claassen and Gina Andrews lost to Goddard 8-2 but came back to soundly defeat Neodesha 8-1. But they couldn't continue that winning trend in the third-place match, losing to Newton 8-4.
Despite the low scores, Coach Wiebe is pleased with her team's effort. They continue to improve with each meet, she said.
Sept. 19, the varsity squad traveled to Towanda for the Circle Invitational.
The Trojans' lineup was again shuffled as sophomore Kelsey Kaufman took the No. 1 singles role. She lost to Wichita Independent 7-0 in her first game, and also went on to lose to Hutch Trinity, Circle, and El Dorado.
No. 2 singles player Gina Andrews started out on a high note, defeating El Dorado 7-3. But in the next round Andrews lost 7-2 to Independent, and later to Trinity and Circle.
The No. 1 doubles duo of Jessica Boese and Kelli Just lost their first match 7-5 to Circle but came back to defeat El Dorado 7-2. They then went on to lose to Independent and Trinity.
No. 2 doubles players Angie Claassen and Mallory Blecha began their tourney with a win, defeating Trinity 7-3. But they went on to lose their next four matches.
The Lady Trojans play at home today.
