Third at state

MISSOULA — The Mission boys came home from state with some hardware - a third place team trophy to be exact.

For head coach Kimimi Ashley, it was a bittersweet accomplishment.

“Being a competitor, I’m proud that we came home with a third place finish, but we should have had a second place finish and even push for a first place. Our boys had the capability to accomplish that. A few matches here and there that we needed to win, and a tough draw for one of those boys, made those little differences,” she said.

But down one hitter to the other teams, she felt her team did well.

Senior Wyatt McCollum lost a tough match early but composed himself to go 5-1 on the week and take a singles bronze.

After a loss to a Conrad hitter, McCollum said he was devastated.

But he found himself facing the player who beat him in the final match for third-fourth, he said.

“It was kind of a revenge match,” he said. “There was definitely a lot of emotion in that match and a lot of cheering on both sides. It was my last match and the last time to do whatever it took.”

He won the battle to finish the season with a 20-5 record.

“I was happy when it was all over,” he said.

Ashley was happy to see him rebound in such a strong fashion.

“He worked hard in accomplishing that. His advancing in play and placing third was crucial in us bringing home a trophy,” she said.

Another Mission senior, Clayton Makepeace, fell early in the tournament. He showed spirit in his final match, down 0-6 in the first set but battling back to finally lose 7-4. He lost his next set 6-4.

“Unfortunately Clayton’s play at state wasn’t indicative of what Clayton’s skill level is. I am glad that he played for us this year and was proud to call him one of our players,” Ashley said.

He finished the season 16-9.

The unsung hero of the tournament was sophomore Spencer Ahlborn.

He didn’t place but a big win in a third round match secured the team’s trophy.

“Spencer grew leaps and bounds in his playing at the tournament. Spencer had the hardest draw of all the players at the tournament, coming up against the eventual state winner in his second round and not once did he complain. He was ready to do battle in each match,” Ashley said.

The top doubles pair of Tyrell McCollum and Marius Eck just lost a second round battle to finish their season.

“Ty McCollum really stepped up his leadership for the Bulldogs tennis team at the tournament,” Ashley said.

Ashley said Bryan Schock and Trail Bundy also had a tough draw, but played well.

On the girls’ side, all Mission players were beat out of the tournament early.

The top doubles pair of Sarah Bowers and Anna Fehrs faced tough competition from Darby and Fairfield.

Yasmine ElMenshawy, an Egyptian foreign exchange student made a big impression on her team this year - her first season with a racket in hand. But she was defeated by more experienced players.

“Being such a great competitor, she took her losses hard, but she had such a great year and came so far in her game. We are very glad that she joined our tennis team and we will miss her when she heads back to Egypt next month,” Ashley said.

Freshman Jane Makepeace also had a strong year that ended in early defeat in a three-set match.

“She also had some good, close matches both in divisional and state tournament. This will prepare her for next year and showed her some of the ways that she can step her game up for next season,” Ashley said.