Ronan tennis: CLIPPING THE EAGS
<p>Daniel Aylesworth zeroes in on the ball during the Chiefs’ victory over the Eagles.</p>
RONAN — It was a bit of a slow week for the Ronan Chiefs, who had only one match on the slate, but they took full advantage of the meeting with Valley Christian, downing the visiting Eagles 4-2 in action on Thursday, April 12.
The theme of the week for the Chiefs was mental toughness, as three of their four wins started out easy, but turned into challenges as the matches progressed.
RONAN — It was a bit of a slow week for the Ronan Chiefs, who had only one match on the slate, but they took full advantage of the meeting with Valley Christian, downing the visiting Eagles 4-2 in action on Thursday, April 12.
The theme of the week for the Chiefs was mental toughness, as three of their four wins started out easy, but turned into challenges as the matches progressed.
In the No. 1 singles match, Ronan’s Hunter Shima cruised early and held on late, downing Valley Christian’s Christopher Manuel 6-0, 7-5. At No. 3, Spencer Sucha experienced a similar ride, defeating Levi Bullock 6-1, 7-6, while the top doubles team of Daniel Aylesworth and Tyler Anderson worked hard for a 6-2, 6-4 win over Dylan Dybdal and Adam Richards.
“Hunter was very good,” Ronan head coach Gordan Cummings said. “He won his first set and held tough in the second, as did Spencer and our No. 1 doubles team of Tyler and Daniel.”
The way in which those players won stood out to Cummings. While it wasn’t easy, the boys plugged away and ground out victories.
“I talked to them about the mental aspect,” Cummings said. “If you win the first set, you can let up and might find yourself down. They settled down well.”
Tallon Fortin and Joey Dresen, Ronan’s No. 2 doubles, dominated their match to earn a 6-0, 6-0 win against Sam Larson and Kelby Grussling.
No. 2 singles player Kyle Yankey had trouble gaining momentum in his match and lost a hard-fought 6-0, 6-2 meeting with Lane Norberg, while Ronny Cullis, at No. 4, controlled his opponent early, but was victimized by a Cameron Morton rally, falling 0-6, 6-3, 6-4.
The Maidens’ scheduled match with Superior was cancelled, leaving them without a match since April 3. Both teams have a busy week on tap. The Chiefs and Maidens battle Eureka on Saturday, April 21 and Bigfork on Tuesday,
April 24.
The teams also faced Troy on April 17 and Mission the next day, but results of those matches were unavailable at press time.
“I’m a little worried,” Cummings said. “We’re coming off of spring break; the girls hadn’t played in two weeks by Tuesday. It concerns me because we’re supposed to have rain throughout the week.”
Ronan 4, Valley Christian 2
Singles – Hunter Shima, R, def. Christopher Manuel, 6-0, 7-5; Lane Norberg, V, def. Kyle Yankey, 6-0, 6-2; Spencer Sucha, R, def. Levi Bullock, 6-1, 7-6; Cameron Morton, V, def. Ronny Cullis, 0-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Doubles – Tyler Anderson/Daniel Aylesworth, R, def. Dylan Dybdal/Adam Richards, 6-2, 6-4; Tallon Fortin/Joey Dressen, R, def. Sam Larson/Kelby Grussling, 6-0, 6-0.