BOURBON - Area high school tennis rivals Bremen and Triton renewed acquaintances on Thursday in Bourbon. The two had met earlier in the season at a tournament with Bremen winning 4-1, but on that day Triton’s lineup was shuffled with a player out due to injury.
“I felt confident, but we had a lot of players playing someone new this time so you never know,” said Bremen head coach Tim Lawmaster. “It’s a fun match. All the girls know each other and it’s one we look forward to it.”
The rematch turned out to be a much closer as the Lady Lions won on the final court to snag the 3-2 victory.
The No. 1 courts for both singles and doubles were convincing wins for each school and the first completed matches. Triton’s pair of Kate Howell and Nadia Stetler, who were celebrating their Senior Night, lost just two games total at No. 1 doubles.
“They have had a good season,” said Triton head coach Emily Nifong. “They love getting to the net, attacking, and putting it away. They don’t wait for the point to happen.”
Shortly after, Bremen’s Emma Lawmaster came off after her double bagel straight-set win at No. 1 singles.
The match with the longest, sustained rallies was at No. 2 singles. After falling behind 2-0 to start the first set, Bremen freshman Lila Meyer rallied to win the final four games to take it at 6-3. The second set was close throughout, before Meyer won two straight while leading 4-3 to close it out.
“I knew that would be a good match,” added Lawmaster. “(Triton’s Sydney Heckaman) hits the ball hard and with a lot of topspin so Lila had to match that. She did a good job of coming to the net and finishing the point too. It was 3-3 in both sets and anything can happen from there. Lila was focused and got the victory.”
The team score was knotted up again at 2-all after Triton’s Sierra Hawley defeated Taylor Rodriguez at No. 3 singles. Although there were many close games, Hawley won the first set, 6-2. It looked like she was going to take the second set relatively easy, leading 5-1, but Rodriguez won three straight to get back in the match before Hawley finished it at 6-4.
“Sierra did a good job,” said Nifong. “She might have gotten a little nervous in the second set, but she is utilizing the whole court so much better now. She has really learned the strategy of the game instead of just hitting the ball.”
That left the match at No. 2 doubles to determine the team outcome. Bremen’s Chloe Craft and Addison Wright played very well overall in taking the first, 6-3. Behind strong net play by Savannah Hawley and great passing shots by Brooke Kitch though, Triton’s pair turned a 2-3 second set disadvantage into a 4-3 lead. They held leads again at 5-4 and 6-5 before Craft and Wright came through with a key hold to send the second set to a tiebreaker. Neither team led by more than a point until the Bremen duo went up 5-3. Triton won the next two points, but the Lady Lions pair responded with the next two to take the tiebreak, 7-5.
“I wish we could have gotten it to a third set, but the girls didn’t give up,” concluded Nifong. “I saw some great shots from both teams. Maybe on another day we could have come out on top.”
“I thought it was going to come down to those last two courts (2S, 2D) and our girls really stepped up,” Lawmaster said.
Bremen will finish off its five-match week on Saturday at Elkhart, then plays in the Indiana Northern State Conference tournament next Tuesday. Triton’s next match is at South Bend Adams, also on Tuesday.
(rharamia@thepilotnews.com)
SINGLES: 1. Emma Lawmaster (B) def. Allie Westafer 6-0, 6-0; 2. Lila Meyer (B) def. Sydney Heckaman 6-3, 6-3; 3. Sierra Hawley (T) def. Taylor Rodriguez 6-2, 6-4
DOUBLES: 1. Kate Howell/Nadia Stetler (T) def. Kallie Meister/Abby Bennitt 6-1, 6-1; 2. Chloe Craft/Addison Wright (B) def. Savannah Hawley/Brooke Kitch 6-3, 7-6(5)
