Tennis teams sweep Southwest Valley

Creston boys earned their first dual victory of the season and the girls remained undefeated in varsity tennis action Monday against Southwest Valley.

The Panther boys won 5-4 at home under challenging conditions of northwest wind gusts up to 32 mph, and sustained above 20 mph. The No. 3 doubles team of Dylan Dornack and Carson Beer clinched the victory with an 8-4 win over J.P. Jones and Carter Giles.

Earlier, Beer won his third straight singles match, 8-4. Wesley Wires, Ben Rushing and Tim Bartlett also won singles matches for the Panthers.

Those four singles matches proved to be important for Creston, now 1-3, as the Timberwolves won two of the three varsity doubles matches.

“It was great to be able to get the team win!” said Creston coach Kevin Cooper. “Winning four singles matches for the first time this year really was the difference. We have to figure out how to play doubles better. We have the rest of this week to practice and get ready for a huge stretch of competitions starting next Monday.”

Both Timberwolves teams felt the heat of being shorthanded Monday.

“What a gusty effort for the boys after we lost another starter in the lineup,” SWV coach Steve McGrew said. “That makes three players now who were either projected to be starters or moved into the starting lineup when the season began. But you have to shake off the frustration and stay positive in the moment. I feel like the guys are doing that and I am proud of them for that.”

At Corning, the Southwest Valley girls won the first two singles matches but Creston won three by forfeit and swept the remaining four matches in a 7-2 victory to improve to 3-0 for the season.

“They were dealing with lineup issues for a variety of reasons, so some of our girls didn’t play,” Cooper said. “We had two very close matches at the top of the lineup, but we just were unable to get them to go our way.”

In doubles, Ava Adamson and Kennedy Strider topped Ray Helvie and Mailee Templeton 8-2.

“Helvie and Templeton did well at two doubles, considering that Adamson is such a solid veteran player and Adamson’s partner was a top JV player a year ago,” McGrew said.

Strider (No. 4) also found a singles win 8-3 and Creston freshman Shaylee Coen (No. 5) defeated Fiona McDaniel in an 8-0 sweep. The duo of Sasha Wurster and Hollynn Rieck defeated the senior Timberwolves doubles team of Maddie Bevington and Natalia Zimmerman 8-5.

The Panthers played Clarke at Osceola Tuesday night. Monday the Panthers open at home against Chariton.

BOYS

Creston 5, SW Valley 4

Singles — Matthew Means (SWV) def. Spencer Brown (Cr), 8-4; Wesley Wires (Cr) def. Quaid Eddy (SWV), 8-6; Ben Rushing (Cr) def. Jordan Bruce (SWV), 8-4; Tim Bartlett (Cr) def. Brady Spark (SWV), 8-3; Carter Giles (SWV) def. Dylan Dornack (Cr), 8-6; Carson Beer (Cr) def. J.P. Jones (SWV), 8-4.

Doubles — Means-Eddy (SWV) def. Brown-Wires (Cr), 8-2; Bruce-Spark (SWV) def. Rushing-Bartlett (Cr), 8-2; Dornack-Beer (Cr) def. Giles-J.R. Jones (SWV), 8-2.

GIRLS

Creston 7, SW Valley 2

Singles — Maddie Bevington (SWV) def. Ava Adamson (Cr), 8-6; Natalia Zimmerman (SWV) def. Sasha Wurster (Cr), 9-7; Hollynn Rieck (Cr) by forfeit; Kennedy Strider (Cr) def. Mailee Templeton (SWV), 8-3; Shaylee Coen (Cr) def. Fiana McDaniel (SWV), 8-0; Marlee Stalker (Cr) by forfeit.

Doubles — Wurster-Rieck (Cr) def. Bevington-Zimmerman (SWV), 8-5; Adamson-Strider (Cr) def. Mullen-Templeton (SWV), 8-2; Coen-Stalker (Cr) by forfeit.