August 25, 2025

Cardinals edge rival Oskaloosa in LHC tennis contest

Newton girls score fourth straight win over Indians

By Troy Hyde
Morgan Frehse and Brooklyn Sterling

Junior Morgan Frehse, left, and senior Brooklyn Sterling won their match at No. 1 doubles in straight sets, and the victory helped the Newton girls tennis team clinch a 6-5 dual win over Oskaloosa on Thursday. (Colin Peters/Oskaloosa Herald) (Colin Peters/Oskaloosa Herald)

OSKALOOSA — Another strong day in singles and a pair of huge wins at the top of the doubles lineup powered the Newton girls tennis team past Oskaloosa on Thursday.

The Cardinals needed just two doubles victories to down the Indians, and Newton edged its hosts, 6-5, in Little Hawkeye Conference action.

Ava Williams

Newton senior Ava Williams won her match in straight sets at No. 5 singles against Oskaloosa on Thursday. The Cardinals went 4-2 in singles before holding off the Indians, 6-5, in a Little Hawkeye Conference matchup. (Colin Peters/Oskaloosa Herald) (Colin Peters/Oskaloosa Herald)

It was the Cardinals fourth straight win over Oskaloosa, but five of the last seven duals ended 6-5. It was Newton’s second straight win by that margin.

“Oskaloosa is always close for a lot of reasons,” Newton head girls tennis coach Erick Zehr said. “The biggest, for me, are the similarities in our demographics and program situations. We both have to overcome similar challenges and develop players with limited access to outside resources.”

The Cardinals (1-3, 1-2 in the conference) took an early lead with a 4-2 advantage in singles. Oskaloosa (1-2, 0-2) rallied to tie the dual at 5-all before Sloan Brodersen and Kaetlin McPartlin locked up the team win following a 7-6 (8-6), 6-2 victory over Leah Cohrt and Brooklyn Coenen at No. 2 doubles.

Morgan Frehse and Brooklyn Sterling kept the Cardinals alive with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Loghan Edgar and Jillian Parks at No. 1 doubles, a spot in the lineup that rarely goes to Newton in the head-to-head matchup, according to Zehr.

“Oskaloosa is always strong in doubles,” Zehr said. “They have good athletes and are well coached at anticipation and aggression. So we were very happy to see (Frehse) and (Sterling) play well enough to get a win at No. 1 doubles.

“They both have good instincts and reactions and they played really well off each other.

Sterling was a 6-2, 6-0 winner over Cohrt at No. 2 singles, Brodersen scored a 1-6, 6-1, 1-0 (10-8) victory over Parks at No. 3 singles and McPartlin turned in a 7-6 (10-8), 6-0 triumph over Addison Landers at No. 4 singles.

Ava Williams swept Kylie Owens 6-3, 6-0 at No. 5 singles, and Camryn Andrew fell to Hailey Montgomery in a third-set tiebreaker at No. 6 singles.

Brooklyn Sterling

Newton senior Brooklyn Sterling went 2-0 against Oskaloosa on Thursday. The Cardinals needed all four singles victories in their 6-5 dual win over the Indians. (Colin Peters/Oskaloosa Herald) (Colin Peters/Oskaloosa Herald)

It was a 2-0 day for Sterling, Brodersen and McPartlin. Williams and Andrew lost a third-set tiebreaker at No. 3 doubles.

“We knew we would be strong at 1-3 in singles, but the really pleasant surprise has been the emergence of 4-6 in the lineup,” Zehr said. “Against Indianola, we were short-handed and still did really well in the bottom three. It’s been really critical for keeping us in meets. Our doubles are less strong right now mostly because of inexperience.

“Playing doubles is quite a bit different than singles anyway, but partner chemistry and coordination are very important, too.”

Newton plays Boone at 4:15 p.m. on Monday at McHose Park in Boone.

The Cardinals face state-ranked Pella at 4:15 p.m. on Thursday at Caldwell Park in Pella.