High School Tennis: Iola Fillies
Iola Highs Fillie tennis team took to the court for the first time this season Thursday night in Chanute.
Led by the undefeated number one doubles team of juniors Carlie Payne and Gabby Richards, Iola took third overall with seven wins, just one win behind second-place Labette and two wins behind first-place Chanute.
Last year, we placed second at this tourney and even though we only placed third this year, I’m happy, head coach Jenn Bycroft said. There’s always some nerves, but after they got their first match out of the way, they all settled down a bit.
Payne and Richards opened their undefeated campaign with an easy 8-0 dispatch of Labette before beating Neodesha 8-2.
Payne and Richards faced an uphill battle during their final match versus Chanute. After falling behind 5-1, they came back to force a tie-break at 7-7.
The girls dug deep and earned their final point after a 9-7 tie-break.
It was so close with some very long points, Bycroft said. Tiebreak situations always make me nervous but Carlie and Gabby fought hard. Those two never give up. It was a great way to end our first matches of the season.
The number two singles team of Kassy and Sidney Shelby competed in their first varsity match after playing much of 2017 on junior varsity. They presented themselves rather well, ending the day with a 2-1 record.
The Shelbys beat Labette 8-1 before blanking Neodesha 8-0. They then put up a fight versus Chanute in their final match but fell 8-4.
They have a natural chemistry and really know how to back each other up on the court, Bycroft said. They also have a lot of fun. I was impressed with how they competed on the varsity level last night.
On the singles side of things, both number one singles player Allie Utley and number two Jennifer Tidd went 1-2.
Utley played number two singles last season so moving up to the top spot was a bit of an adjustment to start the year. She fell 8-6 to Paige Burleigh of Labette before grabbing an 8-1 win over Ashley Chandler of Neodesha.
She closed out the meet with an 8-5 loss to Mikayla Kwek of Chanute.
Tidd fell in the opening match to Lexi Baughman of Labette 8-3 before shutting out Topanga McKinnis of Neodesha 8-0. Tidd fell to Hannah Hugo of Chanute 8-3 in her final match.
Up next, the Fillies will host their home invitational on Thursday starting at 3 p.m. They will look to win it for the second year in-a-row.
