Friday, March 29, 2024

Tigers tennis builds camaraderie in beginning of season

Posted

ENTIAT - Rain and snow are the natural enemy of a tennis team, but the Entiat tennis team sees it as more of an opportunity. 

“The first week of our season consisted of snow blowing and shoveling 18-inches of snow and ice off of our courts. (Although) The snow and rain has slowed our development at this point in the season, the team’s dedication and willingness to work hard will more than offset this in the long run,” head coach Lee Southard said enthusiastically. “On the positive side this was a good team bonding experience for all of us.”

Talent wise, coach Southard expects his team to be a force as the season progresses. 

“This year our girls team looks the same as last year, except for a welcome addition of three freshman,” coach Southard said. “Daisy Arias and Hailey (Lefty) Davis will be solid at first  doubles.  Yaretzy Ayala, Celest McTaggart, Neida Guerrero and Ginny Kammeyer will battle it out for the singles spots.  Brooklyn Eisenhard, Alexis Williams and Nadia Rivera are freshmen who have already made great strides this year.  They are very coachable.

The boys team consists of four freshman and one junior.  

“Spencer Southard is the sole returning player from last year.  He will team up with Christopher Mudgett at first doubles and Jaime Padilla, Tyler Anderson and Yancy Ayala will all be rotating through singles and doubles this year. 

Since the team is small, the boys should expect a lot of playing time which will help in their overall growth as players. 

When asked about a match his team is looking forward to, Southard responded with Liberty Bell, because “we always have fun and hard fought matches when we play them.” 

Next up for the Tigers is a match against Okanogan on Thursday, March 30. Their next home match is Friday, March 31 against Oroville. 

 

Zach Johnson can be reached at lcmeditor@gmail.com or (509) 682-2213

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here