Waynesville Tennis kicked off their season tonight, dropping 1-8 to Willow Springs. Last year, this same team beat us 0-9 and took home a first-place Conference trophy. Bringing back their entire Varsity squad, we knew we had our work cut out for us. I was very pleased with how we played last night. Although the score doesn’t always reflect, the girls played strong for their first match of the season. 

Our win of the night came from our #3 doubles team made up of Juniors Naudia Evans and Allison Wilking. These girls played together last year, which can make a huge difference in success. These girls know each other very well and can read each other well oncourt. They’ve also spent a great deal of time on the courts this summer. Tonight, they showed just how much progress they have made with an 8-2 victory over their opponents. Naudia played extremely aggressive tonight. That, coupled with Allison’s accuracy, made them a duo unmatched by their opponents. 

After playing such a great doubles match, Naudia came back and played an intense match that ended in a tiebreaker. Falling 8-9 (3-7), I was still super proud of this match. 

Another impressive match was played by Sira Rawaekklang (jr.). Ranked #10 last season, Sira has put in so much time during the off-season and worked her way up to a #2 ranking. Also playing a very aggressive match, Sira ended 4-8 with close, long rallies.

The Tigers will play their first home match on Thursday against Bolivar before hitting the road to Richland on Friday. 

Singles

Alexuz Pesantemercado vs. Riley Pool, 1-8

Sira Rawaekklang vs. Taylor Reese, 4-8

Kristen Sneed vs. McKenna Cox, 1-8

Allison Wilking vs. Kylie Cox, 4-8

Naudia Evans vs. Hunny Hanson, 8-9 (3-7) tiebreaker

Natalie Owens vs. Jessie Clarkston, 1-8

Doubles

Pesantemercado/Sneed vs. Reese/M. Cox, 2-8

Rawaekklang/Owens vs. Pool/Hanson, 4-8

Wilking/Evans vs. K. Cox/Olga Dudko, 8-2