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Wednesday, April 29, 2015 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Boys tennis sweeps doubles matches against Willamette
By rongi yost
Correspondent
The Outlaws boys ten-
nis team swept the doubles
matches against Willamette
this past weekend, and
defeated the Wolverines 5-3.
Three days earlier Sisters beat
Cascade 5-3 at home at Black
Butte Ranch.
Sisters traveled to
Willamette on Friday, and
were met with wet courts
that needed to be swept and
squeegeed before the match
could begin. Teams played
for approximately 45 minutes
before the rains began again.
The match had to be post-
poned, and play was resumed
late Saturday morning after
the courts had dried out.
The doubles teams were
all at the top of their game
and easily prevailed against
their opponents.
Ethan Stengel and Shawn
Horton (No. 1 doubles) beat
Austin Hart and Nicolas
Santamaria 6-4, in the first
set and then ran away with
the second set in a final score
of 6-2. The combo are play-
ing much more aggressively
at the net, which has allowed
them to control play at the
net.
At No. 2 doubles, Ben
Johnson and Gabe Willitts
defeated Evan Clark and
Joseph Hendrickson 6-2, 6-1.
The duo played their best
match yet, and continue to
improve with every match.
“These guys are capital-
izing on their height,” said
Coach Bim Gander. “We are
trying to move them to the net
at the earliest possible oppor-
tunity, and that strategy is
paying huge dividends.”
Pierce Wehrle and Josh
Kizziar (No. 3 doubles) beat
Anthony Sevey and Clay
Iddings 6-1, 6-0.
... they continue to win
matches because of their
consistent play, and drive
to keep the ball in play.
— Coach Bim gander
“Pierce and Josh aren’t as
imposing at the net as Ben
and Gabe, but they continue
to win matches because of
their consistent play, and
drive to keep the ball in play,”
stated Gander.”
Andrew Stengel and Gus
Gyorgyfalvy (No. 4 doubles)
rounded out the wins in
doubles play. Stengel and
Gyorgyfalvy beat Xiaoping
Lei and Alex Ruiz-Martinez
6-1, 6-1. Gander was thrilled
with their performance.
“The improvement they
showed today was noth-
ing less than astounding,”
he said. “Today they really
gelled as a team and played
very well together, which is
key to doubles. I expect great
things from them as they go
forward.”
Colin Reinert earned
Sisters lone win in singles
play. Reinert beat Andrew
Michaelenko 6-2 in the first
set and then blanked him 6-0
in the second set.
“It was a terrific match,”
said Gander. “Colin is mov-
ing much better, which is
complementing his already
strong serve. He’s peaking at
the right time.”
The Outlaws were to play
North Bend on Saturday, but
due to delays because of rain,
and chances of more rain to
come, North Bend decided
not to make the five-hour
drive.
Earlier in the week, the
Outlaws beat Cascade, and
for the first time all season
were able to post a sweep in
the singles matches.
Colin Reinert was firing
on all cylinders at the No. 1
singles spot. Colin served
well and played aggressive
tennis to easily prevail 6-1,
6-1, over Daniel Seulzle.
“This was the best match
Colin has played so far this
year,” said Coach Gander. “I
hope it will set him up for the
district competition.”
Connor Schaab also
played a great match at No.
2 singles to earn a 6-1, 6-4
victory over Manual Franco.
The second set was a dogfight
and at one point was tied up
at 4-4, but Schaab was able to
forge ahead for the win.
Michael Commins beat
Alex Cowan 6-3 in the first
set, fell 4-6 in the second, and
then got off to an early start
in the super-tie-breaker and
coasted to a 10-4 win.
“Both Connor and
Michael’s serves are really
coming along,” said Gander.
“We want to utilize their
exceptional height to develop
their serves into a strategic
weapon, and both are making
good progress in that regard.”
Jon Gurney started with
a bang in his varsity debut
at the No. 4 singles spot, and
defeated Joshua Osuna 6-1,
6-3.
“Jon shows a lot of
promise,” said Gander. “He
more than met my expecta-
tions today.”
Ben Johnson and Gabe
Willitts (No. 2 doubles) were
the lone doubles winners and
came out on top in a tough-
fought match. The duo beat
Jo Remy and Peyton Hunt
6-4, 6-4.
“These guys are both over
six feet tall and they are a
wall at the net,” said Gander.
“Their aggressive play at the
net is consistently winning
matches for them.”
The Outlaws will not have
any matches next week, but
will resume play on Tuesday,
May 5, with a make-up match
at home against Klamath
Union. On Friday, May 8,
Sisters will play at home
against Mt. View.
The squad is working hard
in preparation for the dis-
trict championships, which
will be held at Black Butte
Ranch, Sunday through
Tuesday, May 10-12. The
Outlaws will have their
hands full with powerhouse
North Bend, and Henley,
who also boasts a very tough
squad. Gander told The
Nugget that if the Outlaws
can finish a strong third his
expectations will have been
met.