STC’s Jordyn Cremeans tosses up a serve during as set against Makenna Shaffner in Oskaloosa. Shaffner won 10-0 Photo Provided

Werner Leads STC Girls Tennis Against Oskaloosa

After a year away from the courts, the STC Girls Tennis Team traveled to Oskaloosa on April 6 to take on former Little Hawkeye Conference Rival Oskaloosa.

The Trojans presented a lineup with just one player with any varsity experience while playing without a varsity member. STC fell by a team score of 8-1 to the more experienced host team. The Trojans were paced by Senior Hope Werner who notched a win at #1 Singles.

“I am very proud of this team. Tonight, nearly everyone had to face the fear of playing in their first varsity match. Now they know they can do it. We gained a lot of confidence just by competing,” coach Steve Bearden said.

Werner kept pace early in the match as she nosed ahead by a 3-2 score against Jillian Jennings. Werner’s consistency proved to be her biggest asset as she stretched her lead to 6-2. In the final five games, Werner grabbed four of the five games to post the victory by a final score of 10-3.

Stepping in at #2 Singles for her first match ever was Senior Rachel Silhanek in the absence of South Tama’s planned #2 player. Osky’s Aubree Blanco built an early lead at 4-0 despite Silhanek’s valiant effort. In the end, Blanco proved to have too much experience as she won 10-0.

Senior Jordyn Cremeans made her varsity singles debut at #3 Singles when she faced senior Makenna Shaffner. Shaffner used a methodical game to build an early lead. In the end, Shaffner was victorious 10-0.

Senior Klohe Chyma also took to the court for the first time in varisty singles at #4. She faced Amanda Fay and played well despite the match score. Fay built on an early service break to gain the lead. Ultimately, Fay was victorious by a 10-0 score.

Junior Adriana Cervantes participated in the most dramatic match of the night at #5 Singles. Playing her first varsity match, Cervantes proved to be up to the task as she faced Linette Ramirez. Trailing 6-4, Cervantes battled back to even things at 6-6 all. Ramirez again took the lead at 8-7, but Cervantes again evened things at 8-8 by hitting several forehand winners. Ramirez grabbed the final two games to secure the 10-8 win for Oskaloosa despite a great effort by Cervantes.

At #6 Singles, Junior Grace Novotny faced off against Autumn DeRonde. In a match that saw Novotny gain more and more confidence, DeRonde proved to be experienced enough to gain control. Novotny played well but fell by a score of 10-2.

In Junior Varsity Action, South Tama fell by a score of 2-5. South Tama grabbed a win in doubles by Katie Husak, 10/Jimena Nunez, 10. They defeated their opponents 8-7. Sophomore Alondra Bolanos secured a win in JV Singles when she defeated her opponent 6-3. Bolanos teamed with Sophomore Kara Nachazel in doubles and narrowly saw defeat by a score of 8-7.

STC Girls Tennis Falls to Mount Vernon

The STC Girls Tennis Team found themselves on the road for the second time in three days as they took on the Mustangs of Mount Vernon on April 8. The Trojans battled the host school, gusty winds, cool temperatures, and outlasted a pop shower before falling by a score of 8-1.

Senior Hope Werner improved her record to 2-0 after securing a win in the #1 singles position.

Werner faced Annalise Harp in the match featuring the two best players for each team. Both players battled to a 3-3 tie before Werner’s steady ground game helped her ease ahead. Werner utilized her foot speed and a reliable forehand to surge to a 5-4 lead. Harp grabbed just one more game in the match. Werner refused to lose as she posted an 8-5 victory for STC.

Junior Adriana Cervantes faced off against Macy Eskelsen at #5 Singles. Eskelsen raced out to a 3-0 lead before Cervantes broke serve twice to find her way back into the match. Leveling things at 4-4, Cervantes traded service breaks with Eskelsen to keep the match close. Ultimately, Cervantes couldn’t find the consistency to convert the biggest points as she fell 8-5.

South Tama’s inexperience was evident as they struggled to gain any footing in the rest of the singles matches. Senior Rachel Silhanek took to the court in only her second ever singles match against Rachel Axtell at #2 Singles. Silhanek showed improvement despite a 0-8 loss. Senior Jordyn Cremeans was defeated 1-8 by Brooke Schurbon at #3 Singles. Klohe Chyma fell 0-8 to Cami Streicher at #4 Singles. Junior Grace Novotny came up short against Kasia Wiebel at #6 Singles by a score of 0-8.

In doubles action, Mount Vernon’s Harp/Axtell defeated Werner/Silhanek at #1 Doubles 8-0. Novotny/Cervantes moved up to play at #2 Doubles against Schurbon/Louwagie. Novotny/Cervantes fell behind early but played their opponents even in the latter part of the match before falling 3-8. Cremeans/Chyma showed improvement at #3 Doubles when they faced off against Eskelsen/Streicher. The duo from STC played well but fell 8-3

In JV action, Mount Vernon was victorious 4-1. STC grabbed a win by the doubles team of Lucy Winter Chaser/Jimena Nunez.