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South Putnam falls to Northview in girls' tennis sectional opener
The opening round of the IHSAA Greencastle Girls’ Tennis Sectional came and went Wednesday evening as South Putnam and Northview clashed for the second time in five days.
As happened last Friday, the Knights walked out 5-0 winners over the Eagles, ending the latter’s season and advancing to Thursday’s second semifinal to face Owen Valley.
“We knew coming in it was going to be a tough match but I’m proud of the way the girls stepped up,” South Putnam head coach Johnnie Briones said. “They played really well today.
“Both our singles and doubles players came ready to play but the ball just didn’t bounce our way. We gave it a good effort and I’m proud of them for that.”
Martina Sutherland picked up the first point for Northview at No. 2 singles, defeating Kylie Arnold 6-0, 6-0 with Caroline Kooistra not far behind, winning the second point at No. 3 singles over Kaley Hodge 6-3, 6-1.
No. 2 doubles provided the clinching point as Ariella Engle and Myra McQueen defeated Courtney Huff and Amelia Jester 6-1, 6-3 to ensure the Knights would play Thursday.
Both top spots proved to be competitive bouts as Kathleen Boor and Kambree James were able to edge past Sydnee Boswell and Madie Newby 6-4, 6-4 in the fourth completed match of the night.
At No. 1 singles, Samantha Hendricks and Ava Watson went game-for-game in the opening set, ending in a tiebreak which Hendricks was able to jump out to a sizable lead in, eventually claiming it and the match 7-6 (7-4), 6-3, to complete the sweep.
Northview faces Owen Valley Thursday in the second game of the Greencastle Girls’ Tennis Sectional with the winner advancing to Friday’s finals, taking on the winner of the first match between the host Tiger Cubs and South Vermillion.
South Putnam will have to replace six seniors in the lineup ahead of next year with Briones both sad for the season to end but also eager to see what the next group of players can accomplish.
“We have a lot of seniors so I’m losing a lot of the varsity,” Briones noted. “Sydney is the only returning player I have but I’m excited about what’s up and coming.
“A lot of our matches this year were so close, going to deuce so many times. Our young girls see that and they know how to react to and finish a match, so that’s going to help them tremendously.”