CONFERENCE ACES

POLSON — Forget the leaky roof. Polson might have to pass a levy to build a new wing at the high school to hold all the trophies that the tennis teams keep winning. The Lady Pirates picked up their sixth-straight Northwestern A divisional title while the Pirates picked up their first conference crown since 2005.

POLSON — Forget the leaky roof. Polson might have to pass a levy to build a new wing at the high school to hold all the trophies that the tennis teams keep winning. The Lady Pirates picked up their sixth-straight Northwestern A divisional title while the Pirates picked up their first conference crown since 2005.

Polson also qualified 15 players for the state tournament, which takes place May 24-26 in Great Falls.

“It’s exciting, I would have never dreamed of sixth championships in a row for the girls,” Polson head coach Bob Hislop said. “And for the boys, it couldn’t have happened to a neater group of guys.”

Polson’s Whitney Zimmerman and Brady Hislop won the singles divisional championships, and will both come back next year to defend their title.

“It’s great,” Hislop said. “They’re the two kids that are the most invested in tennis in terms of time, heading to tournaments during the summer and working on their game.”

Mollybeth Hendrix and Kenzie Clay won the girls doubles divisional championship for Polson. The Lady Pirates not only swept the championships, but Sara Robinson also placed second in girls singles, while Audra Engebretson and Karmen Borchers placed second in girls doubles.

All the girls championship matches were Polson vs. Polson, and the team will send nine players to the state tournament. Kaylee Wagner was fourth in girls singles, while Karly Rochin and Jordan Quinn were third in girls doubles play.

“Kaylee isn’t afraid to go out there on the court and wait out another kid in a match,” Hislop said. “She had a lot of heart.”

As a team, Polson more than tripled the second place finisher at divisionals, Whitefish, 65 points to 21.

“We’re trying to create a situation where the kids you have coming back each year are really strong while you’re also putting in new kids to build for the future,” Hislop said. “The girls are a senior-laden team, but we also have a JV team that has very, very good athletes.”

Meanwhile, the boys picked up their first Northwestern A championship in seven years with plenty of youth on the roster. They doubled up the second place divisional finisher, Whitefish, 54-29.

“The boys have kept coming and coming and growing better over the course of the season,” Hislop said. “They’re tough and they compete better than any other group of boys that I’ve had.”

It was Polson vs. Polson in the boys divisional championship, with Sam Peel taking second place. Peel was undefeated during the regular season, as was doubles team Hayden Congdon and Dylan McCrumb, which placed second at divisionals.

Doubles team Will Davey and Ian Laimbeer placed fourth at divisionals and will also be heading to state. Six boys will be going to the big show overall.

Freshman Layne Zimmerman also went undefeated at the divisionaltournament before having to withdraw from the semi-finals because of sickness. In all, the only team not from Polson to make a championship match was from Whitefish.

Camp Kenyon and Connor Ellis won the Northwestern A divisional title with an unorthodox style of play, but the Pirates and Lady Pirates occupied the other five championship game slots.

“It’s just a fun group of kids we have here,” Hislop said. “It’s a nice group to be around.”

However, the tough part about that arrangement was that Polson players were playing against each other, something that hadn’t been done in competition during the regular season.

“It’s pretty hard on the kids,” Hislop said. “They don’t want to beat on their teammates, but they always want to win a championship. Of the four winners, they had good days, they did what they needed to do.”

Three Polson girls doubles teams won the top three spots in the divisional tournament, and they rotated through how they were seeded in dual matchups during the regular season since the level of talent was very close between the six of them.

“Those three teams are evenly matched,” Hislop said. “If you’d play out the tournament a few more times you’d probably have a different champion every time.”

And even aside from the 15 kids going to state, Hislop said that the rest of his team is extremely talented.

“You have a lot of nice tennis players staying home too,” Hislop said.

With the state tournament this week, Hislop said that his two singles champions, Brady Hislop and Zimmerman, could compete well among a tough field.

“Their prospects are really high,” Hislop said. “The boys and girls singles state draws will be tough, they’re definitely capable of placing but it doesn’t get easier from here. They could be competing for a state championship or not placing. That’s how competitive it is, it just depends on the weekend that they have.”

With Polson athletic director Scott Wilson scheduling a lot of quality opponents in the regular season schedule, the Pirates and Lady Pirates have seen what they have to compete against. Now it’s a matter of performing on the state stage.

“It’s a matter of tweaking a few things,” Hislop said. “It’s going to be a tough state tournament because there are some good, deep teams out there.”

But as Polson proved at divisionals, they’re one of those good, deep teams as well.

NORTHWESTERN A DIVISIONALS

GIRLS

Team Totals - Polson 65, Whitefish 21, Columbia Falls 17, Libby 10

Singles

Semifinals - Whitney Zimmerman (P) def. Mackenzie Thomas (WF) 6-0, 6-0; Sara Robinson (P) def. Gabrielle Stenger (CF) 1-6, 6-1, 6-1.

Championship - Zimmerman (P) def. Robinson (P) 6-1, 6-0 Consolation - Sloan Ellis (WF) def. Simone Craft (WF) 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-3; Kylee Wegner (P) def. Tegan Bauer (P) 6-2, 6-3; Kaya Hardgrove (L) def. Patricia Manikova (L) 5-7, 6-4, 6-1; Emma Covill (CF) def. Gabby Keller (CF) 4-6, 7-6 (6), 6-2; Covill (CF) def. Hardgrove (L) 7-6 (5), 6-4. Consolation Final - Stenger (CF) def. Wegner (P) 6-3, 6-4.

Doubles

Semifinals - Mollybeth Hendrix/ Kenzie Clay (P) def. Lindsey Viscomi (WF) 6-3, 6-4; Audra Engebretson/Karmen Borchers (P) def. Karly Rochin/Jordan Quinn (P) 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5). Championship - Hendrix/Clay (P) def. Engebretson/Borchers (P) 6-4, 6-2

Consolation - Ryan Chauner/Haley Craven (WF) def. McKenna Emmerich/Micinize Christopherson (CF) 6-1, 6-0, Kira Kamrud/Kierstan Wendt (CF) def. Hailey Sapa/Courtney Seward (CF) def. 6-1, 6-4; Hannah Sulllivan/Tana Wilson (L) def. Becky Boulware/ Mariah Briskin (L) 6-1, 6-4; Kyla O’Brien/Kira Rose (L) def. Maggie Frankino/Lauren Cain (CF) 6-4, 6-4; Chauner/Craven (WF) def. Kamrud/Wendt (CF) 6-0, 6-1; Sullivan/Wilson (L) def. O’Brien/Rose (L) 2-6, 6-1, 6-4; Danzyk/Viscomi (WF) def. Chauner/Craven (WF) 7-6 (2), 2-6, 7-5; Quinn/Rochin (P) def. Sullivan/Wilson (L) 6-3, 6-1;

Consolation Final - Quinn/Rochin (P) def. Danzyk/.Viscomi (WF) 4-6, 6-3, 6-2

BOYS

Team Totals - Polson 54, Whitefish 29, Columbia Falls 22, Libby 17

Singles - Semifinals - Brady Hislop (P) def. Layne Zimmerman (P) default; Sam Peel (P) def. Brian Marcille (CF) 6-3, 6-4

Championship - Hislop (P) def. Peel (P) 6-0, 6-1. Consolation - Dan Leggins (L) def. Jason Schnackenberg (L) 6-4, 6-4; Logan Blades (WF) def. Bailey Jack (WF) 6-2, 6-2; Leggins (L) def. Zimmerman (P) default; Marcille (CF) def. Blades (WF) 7-6 (5), 6-3

Consolation Final - Marcille (CF) def. Leggins (L) 6-2, 6-2.

Doubles

Semifinals - Hayden Congdon/Dylan McCrumb (P) def. Parker Johnson/Miroslav Zvyagelskiy (CF) 3-6, 7-6 (1), 6-4; Camp Kenyon/Connor Ellis (WF) def. Will Davey/Ian Laimbeer (P) 6-7 (2), 7-6 (2), 6-3. Championship - Kenyon/Ellis (WF) def. Congdon/McCrumb 6-3, 6-3. Consolation - Andrew West/Mason Gedlaman (CF) def. Sam Kinzle/Reed Hovenkotter (P) 6-2, 4-6, 7-5; Rob Hamilton/Pat Valentine (L) def. Simon Kaell/Kolter Larsen (WF) 6-4, 7-5; Ian Myslicki/Lane Luscher (L) def. Mike Sandifer/Wyatt Wollenzien (CF) 6-0, 6-3; Sean Janni/Nick Jack (WF) def. Jake Reny/Josh Broderick (L) 6-2, 6-4; West/Gedlaman (CF) def. Hamilton/Valentine (L) 6-3, 6-2; Janni/Jack def. Myslciki/Luscher (L) 6-4, 6-2; Johnson/ Zvyagelskiy (CF) def. West/Gedlaman (CF) 6-2, 6-2; Davey/Laimbeer (P) def. Janni/Jack (WF)6-2, 6-1

Consolation Final - Johnson/Zvyagelskiy (CF) def. Laimbeer/Davey (P) 6-2, 6-7 (5), 6-2