Bulldogs tie Bears in 4A Inland Empire League tennis clash
—Photo by ERIC PLUMMER Sandpoint senior Cassidy Story played very strong in defeat, facing one of the top girls players in North Idaho.
SANDPOINT — Led by a sweep in boys and girls doubles, the Bulldogs tied Moscow 6-6 after losing a couple of tough matches that could have gone either way.
Despite losing in the final match, Bulldog head coach Kent Anderson had high praise for the play of Alana Seifert in a 7-5, 7-5 loss.
“Alana played as well as I’ve ever seen her in the loss. Both girls had solid strokes and good shot location,” said Anderson. “If there was ever a good loss, this was it. Alana is getting tougher and tougher.”
Patrick Rockwell and Matthew Curtiss won in straight sets with high pressure doubles.
“It’s always fun watching Patrick and Matthew dominate at the net,” described Anderson. “They seem to float to the ball then elevate for massive put-aways. They play similar styles and are extremely intimidating.”
Anderson also like the play of Koen Connor, who notched the only singles victory for the Bulldogs.
“He used his strong court sense to roll through his opponent, frustrating him with a variation of pace and angles,” said Anderson. “It was a great win for Koen against a very strong opponent.”
Anderson said the team is closing in on its district lineup, and plans to put his team through a tough three weeks leading up to state.
Sandpoint is at the Inland Empire Tournament on Friday and Saturday in Spokane.
SANDPOINT 6, MOSCOW 6
GIRLS SINGLES
No. 1 — Moscow d. Cassidy Story, 7-5, 6-1. No. 2 — Moscow d. April Clark, 6-1, 6-3. No. 3 — Moscow d. Alana Seifert, 7-5, 7-5.
GIRLS DOUBLES
No. 1 — Laney Search/Khloe Kyllonen, Spt, d. Moscow, 6-0, 6-0. No. 2 — Violet Plummer/Caroline Suppiger, Spt, d. Moscow, 6-1, 6-0.
BOYS SINGLES
No. 1 — Moscow d. Logan Temple, 6-0, 6-1. No. 2 — Moscow d. Jacob Jackson, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4. No. 3 — Koen Connor, d. Moscow, 6-4, 6-2.
BOYS DOUBLES
No. 1 — Patrick Rockwell/Matthew Curtiss, Spt, d. Moscow, 6-2, 6-2. No. 2 — Jake Aguirre/Reilly Wolfe, Spt, d. Moscow, 6-4, 6-2.
MIXED DOUBLES
No. 1 — Moscow d. Michael Favor/Allura Livingston, 7-6 (8-6), 6-4. No. 2 — Cory Diehl/Liz Parsley, Spt, d. Moscow, 6-2, 6-2.