More Division 1 tests sharpen Tigers' tennis skills

• Jenny Hudalla

Senior Jenny Hudalla (above) and doubles partner Alina Stai moved into the one doubles role for the Tigers last week.

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The New Richmond girls tennis coaches wanted more Division 1 opponents on their schedule. In the first two weeks of the 2010 season, the Tigers have gotten a steady diet of Division 1 matches.

And the Tigers have stood up to the Division 1 challenges quite nicely, too.

Following tournaments at Eau Claire and Altoona last week, the Tigers were 5-3 against Division 1 opponents

In the tournament at Altoona last Friday and Saturday, the Tigers won three of their four matches. The Tigers’ only loss was against Altoona in an extremely close call. Altoona won 4-3, with four of the seven matches going to three sets. Two of the Tigers’ losses came on third set tie-breaks.

The Division 1 opponents couldn’t match the Tigers in the tournament. The Tigers opened the action with a 5-2 win over Chippewa Falls. New Richmond then scored a 4-3 win over Whitewater.

In the fourth round of the tournament the Tigers rolled past Durand, 6-1.

“This is what we’ve needed every year, to get the tougher competition right away,” said Tiger coach Denise Devereux.

Chelsea Anderson went 2-2 at one singles in the tournament. Meghan Frank is starting to build momentum, going 4-0 at two singles in the tournament. Hailey Davis went 3-0 at four singles before being forced to sit out the Durand match due to blisters.

There was a change in the doubles lineup for the tournament. Jenny Hudalla and Alina Stai moved up to one doubles after winning a challenge match against Kaycie Anderson and Amy Kukacka. Devereux said the internal competition within the team will continue to push the girls to improve their skills.

In the tournament played at Eau Claire Memorial last Monday and Tuesday, the Tigers were able to win two of five matches against Division 1 opponents. They lost to three of the top teams from the Big Rivers Conference in Hudson, Eau Claire Memorial and Eau Claire North. The Tigers scored wins over River Falls and Beaver Dam.

This tournament was quite a proving ground for the Tigers, because there were no easy opponents. Anderson scored a big win against Hudson, beating the Raiders’ number one singles player in a third set tie-breaker. Stai and Hudalla also earned a wild third set win in the two doubles match.

The only win against Eau Claire Memorial came from Davis at four singles.

“She held on to win the second set though her feet were full of blisters and she

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could hardly move,” Devereux said.

Eau Claire North scored a 5-2 win over the Tigers, but the match was much closer. Two of the Tigers’ losses came in third set tie-breaks. Frank earned a win against North, rolling to a 6-3, 6-2 win at two singles. The other win came at two doubles, where Stai and Hudalla fought off a challenge to win 7-5, 7-5.

The Tigers clicked against River Falls. The Tigers swept the singles matches and their only loss came at three doubles. The singles lineup was just as sharp in the 5-2 win over Beaver Dam. The Tigers swept the singles matches, along with getting a win at three doubles from Mattie Kidder and Heather Halverson.

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