PELLA — Singles matches were in the book when Newton High’s Cardinal girls and Pella’s Lady Dutch had to clear the tennis courts Thursday. The Lady Dutch collected a weather-delayed 9-2 win over visiting Newton in Little Hawkeye Conference play.
“Tonight was interesting. We had rain in Pella before we arrived, so we had to start late due to the courts drying,” Newton head coach Erick Zehr said. “After the singles a storm rolled in, and we had to delay due to lightning. Fortunately, it didn’t rain too much, and we were only delayed 80 minutes waiting for the courts to dry again. Once they dried, we picked up where we left off under the lights.”
Newton notched a win in the singles division and a victory in the doubles matches.
Megan Pressgrove overcame a first-set loss to win with a third-set tiebreaker at No. 1 singles. Pressgrove netted a 3-6, 6-3, 14-12 victory against Lily Rooseboom.
“Megan dropped the first against Lily, one of the best players in the conference, but battled back through smart play and accurate shots to force a third set,” Zehr said. “The two went back and forth the entire third, until they switched sides at 12 all. Two errors later and Megan had pulled it out 14-12.”
Pressgrove combined with Kate Wyre at No. 1 doubles to take on Rooseboom and Lauren Kriegel. Newton’s duo won (1-0, 1-0) when Rooseboom began to cramp after her singles match and withdrew from doubles competition, Zehr said.
Wyre lost her No. 2 singles match to Bronwyn Metcalf, 6-4, 6-3. Zehr said the two played a close back-and-forth match.
“It was just like the last time they played. Kate won in three at the tournament last year, but Bronwyn was able to win both close sets this time around,” he said.
Pella’s Cecily Johnson beat Sierra Griffith 6-2, 6-0 at No. 3 singles. Kriegel pulled out a 6-1, 0-6, 10-3 win over Newton’s Katherine Thorpe in the No. 4 singles match.
At No. 5 singles, Patience Dykstra downed Newton’s Madison Humphrey 6-3, 6-0. Pella’s Elyse Sadler beat Bethany Baumgartner 3-6, 6-3, 10-8.
“Bethany went to three sets in both singles and doubles, and has really come a long way in the last couple weeks,” Zehr said. “She and Madison got behind early, but evened the match with consistent play from the baseline and aggressive net play, and came up just short in the third.”
Johnson and Sadler got past Newton’s Baumgartner and Humphrey 6-1, 3-6, 10-7 in No. 3 doubles. Pella’s Metcalf and Dystra defeated Newton’s Griffith and Thorpe 6-3, 6-2 at No. 2 doubles.
Newton dropped 7-5, 6-3 decisions at No. 4 doubles and No. 5 doubles. Pella’s Natalie Meyer and Hanna Blom beat Elizabeth Myer sand Kinzie Loree at No. 4. Anna Williamson and Laurel Stelter beat Newton’s Natalie Camp and Thomas at No. 5.
“All in all, I was really proud of the girls. Pella is an excellent team, and we were able to hang with them on most of the courts. They were the better team today, but if we can play with them, we can play with just about anyone,” Zehr said.
Newton is on the road Monday. The Cardinals play at 4 p.m. at Des Moines North.
The Newton junior varsity played at Pella also. Here are the results:
Doubles
Harlie Durr and Stacie Sanger lost 6-1, Rylie Bakalar and Sommer Markham lost 6-0, Haley Walton and Haley Rinehart lost 7-5, Rachel Mullikin and Anna Van Dam won 6-4, Durr and Sanger lost 6-3, Bakalar and Markham 6-1, Walton and Rinehart won 6-4, Mullikin and Van Dam won 6-4.
Contact Jocelyn Sheets at
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