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Minor moving on, Eagles season comes to a close against Northview
BRAZIL -- South Putnam's hope of advancing the 2012 IHSAA Tennis Sectional hit a snag early as the Eagles fell behind early and were never able to recover. South Putnam lost to the host Northview Knights 4-1, with their lone win coming at No. 1 singles.
While the Eagles were unable to come away with the win, head coach Johnnie Briones saw his team battle throughout and saw some nice things along the way.
"I felt like we got a slow start, but once the matches got going, then we started playing some really good tennis," he said. "One and two doubles struggled a little bit, but they hung in there and gave it their best shot. Northview, their doubles, definitely stepped it up. They played a lot better this time around.
"Jade Asher in No. 2 singles, again, slow start, but she picked it up and started hitting the ball a lot better. She noticed her girl really stepped it up," Briones added.
South Putnam's No. 1 singles player Ericka Minor recovered after going down 3-0 in the first set and stormed back win the first set 7-5. Minor relied on a mix of aggressive shots and laying back and letting her opponent, Haley Leach make mistakes. In the second set, Minor was able to post a 6-3 win to advance to the regional level as an individual.
"Ericka, I can't say enough about her," Briones said. "She hangs in every match down or not, she just plays and plays and it pays off. She's going to the individual side of the sectional championship. I can't be more proud of her and a great way to end her season."
Another highlight for the Eagles came at No. 3 singles. Sophomore Kelly Hayden breezed through her first set against Kelsey Oehler, winning 6-1. As easy as the first set came, Hayden struggled in the second set and suffered a 6-2 loss. The sophomore recovered and fought back in the third and final set, knotting the match up at 5-all. However, Hayden couldn't complete the comeback, falling in the final set 7-5.
"Number three singles, Kelly Hayden, she's just a sophomore and that's so sweet. A heck of a match. She always hangs in there. She give 110 percent every night and I couldn't be more proud of her. It was a great experience for her being a sectional match," Briones said.
South Putnam's Jade Asher lost at No. 2 singles to Northview's Nicole Linton 6-2, 6-1. The No. 1 doubles team of Madison Cash and Caitlyn Boyce suffered the same fate, falling to the Knights' Jenna Smith and Trisha Cox 6-2, 6-1. The Eagles' third loss come at No. 2 doubles as the team of Cierra Brown and Kassi Rains fell to Northview's Shelby Timberman and Kaysia Reberger 6-2, 6-3.
At Northview
Northview 4, South Putnam 1
Singles
No. 1: Minor (SP) def. Leach (NV) 7-5, 6-3
No. 2: Linton (NV) def. Asher (SP) 6-2, 6-1
No. 3: Oehler (NV) def. Hayden (SP) 1-6, 6-2, 7-5
Doubles
No. 1: Smith/Cox (NV) def. Cash/Boyce (SP) 6-2, 6-1
No. 2: Timberman/Reberger (NV) def. Brown/Rains (SP) 6-2, 6-3