Panther tennis scrapping, growing

With a tough week ahead, an 8-1 loss to Ballard (3-1) Monday hasn’t done anything to dampen the spirits of the Creston/O-M girls coaching staff.

Head coach Kevin Cooper and assistant coach Amanda Plymale can look left and right on the tennis court and see improvement in every direction.

Sara Williamson and Heylee Shields picked up the lone win for the Panthers at No. 2 doubles where they both managed to hold serve to close out the match.

Shields ripped a down the line passing shot to help close out her service game and gave the duo a 7-5 lead before Williamson closed the door 8-6.

“I feel like our girls competed really hard in a situation where we were already out of the meet,” said Cooper.

Maddie Frey battled back at No. 6 singles after falling behind 7-4 to Hannah Elliot of Ballard.

Frey broke Elliot and then held her serve to cut it to 7-6 after a cross court backhand winner. The freshman pushed the final game to deuce, but couldn’t string together an advantage, falling 8-6.

“She’s just been playing really well ... She is not afraid to hit the ball,” said Plymale. “She plays hard the whole time.”

It was the same story at No. 4 singles where Williamson pushed Lindsey Kaldenberg late after falling behind 7-4 and on the wrong side of two match points. The senior found herself on the wrong end of three match points down 7-5, but fought back to deuce, eventually breaking Kaldenberg’s serve.

Megan Haley suffered a tough 8-2 defeat at No. 1 singles, but Cooper knows she’s right there when it comes to competing with the top of the lineup of other teams.

“She (Haley) played well. The score doesn’t necessarily show how well she played,” said Cooper. “It was just a few inconsistency things.”

Haley and Chloe Hagle fell 8-1 at No. 1 doubles.

One of the biggest takeaways of the coaching staff is the serving ability of players young and old.

Haley uses a right-handed spin serve to push opponents off the court in doubles on the deuce side (serving right to left), forcing them into uncomfortable forehands near the fence.

Hagle and Shields have both developed a powerful, flat first serve, giving opponents just a split-second to make a decision when placed correctly.

The freshmen have also picked up a decent swing.

Freshmen

impressions

Playing against older, more experienced teammates in practice as well as opponents during matches has allowed Karly Calvin and Frey to grow exponential.

Frey and Karly Calvin have shown vast amounts of improvement since the season began and it has allowed them to open up their repertoire.

“As they figured it out ... they’ve just been able to play,” said Plymale. “It’s just coming really natural to them.”

Plymale noted that as they’ve adjusted to play, they’ve quickly figured out some of the shots they are more comfortable hitting, while also figuring out the best place to be for each other in doubles.

“Some of the shots they were hitting tonight are not (like) people who picked up rackets five weeks ago,” said Cooper.

UP NEXT – Creston (2-2) travels to Shenandoah Thursday before playing Clarke Friday, as they continue to try and gain valuable experience against some of the best players in the area in preparation for next week’s Hawkeye 10 tournament.

Results

Ballard 8, Creston-Orient Macksburg 1

Kate Rietz, Bal, def. Megan Haley, C/O-M, 8-2; Anna Zielke, Bal, def. Chloe Hagle, C/O-M, 8-0; Kari Holmes, Bal, def. Heylee Shields, C/O-M, 8-1; Lindsey Kaldenberg, Bal, def. Sara Williamson, C/O-M, 8-6; Hannah Elliott, Bal, def. Maddie Frey, C/O-M, 8-6; Sarah Kamp, Bal, def. Karly Calvin, C/O-M, 8-0.

Rietz/Zielke, Bal, def. Haley/Hagle, C/O-M, 8-2; Shields/Williamson, C/O-M, def. Holmes/Kaldenberg, Bal, 8-6; Elliott/Kamp, Bal, def. Frey/Calvin, C/O-M, 8-0.

JV results

Charity Ransom/Dana Edleman, Bal, def. Hannah Walsh/Unity Anderson, C/O-M, 6-2; Ashley Wuestenberg/Claire Uselding, Bal, def. Jess Eblen/Maisy Franklin, C/O-M, 6-1; Brynna Huen/Mackenna Heggen, Bal, def. Payton Davis/Abbey Abell, C/O-M, 6-3; Hailey Walzer/Sydney Briggs, Bal, def. Patricia Satonghon/Corinna Sutorius, C/O-M, 6-1; Allison Zielke/KatieBolig, Bal, def. Hannah Walsh, C/O-M, 7-5; Franklin/Eblen, C/O-M, def. Elle Shepherd/Gracie Jepsen, Bal, 6-4; Halli McCuddin/Makayla Miller, Bal, def. Abell/Daivs, C/O-M, 6-1; Walsh/Anderson, C/O-M, def. Ashanti Bernett/Jacelyn Wilson, Bal, 6-4.