Wingers tennis wraps up season

The Red Wing girls tennis team finished up its season Thursday with the Section 1AA individual tournament in Rochester.

Four teams, two singles players and two doubles teams, competed for the Wingers. Sophomores Nicole Schammel and Emily Stegora played in the singles bracket while junior Katie Kelly and seniors Nakia Fritz, Marisa Toivonen and Bryn Christenson participated on the doubles side.

Schammel defeated Austin’s No. 1 singles player, Alicia Sforza, 5-7, 6-3, 6-0 in the first round before falling 6-0, 6-1 to last year’s Class 2A runner-up Jessica Aney of Rochester Century. Red Wing head coach Randy Decker said he was impressed with Schammel’s performance against top competition and the team was happy to see her take a game from one of the best players in the state. Schammel was the Wingers’ No. 3 singles player this year.

“You cannot intimidate her,” Decker said. “She could be playing Serena Williams and she’d still be scrapping and believing.”

Stegora fell in the first round to Sydney Parkinson of Lakeville North 6-2, 6-2.

Kelly and Fritz combined to take down the top seed in Red Wing’s half of the section pool during first round play. They beat Gretchen Hoffman and Tatum Holland of Lakeville North 6-0, 6-3.

“It was the best match I’ve seen Nakia play,” Decker said. “It was a great last day of her career.”

In the second round, Fritz and Kelly lost 6-2, 6-1 to Maddie Kircher and Katie Aney of Rochester Century.

Red Wing’s other doubles team of Toivonen and Christenson rolled through the first two rounds, winning 6-0, 6-0 against Austin’s Jacylyn Bird and Nicole Hose and 6-2, 6-0 over Northfield’s Annika Johnson and Elizabeth Pritchard before running into the second-seeded team from Lakeville North. Toivonen and Christenson dropped the match in straight sets 6-3, 6-3 against North’s Sarah Lindstrand and Maddie Lindstrom.

“It was a high-quality match,” Decker said. “They were really accomplished doubles players. We had some shots that I thought were sure putaways and these kids were getting them back. They were just a little better.”

The Wingers did not send anyone to the section finals but Decker said he was content with how the year turned out.

“It was a great year,” Decker said. “But we will certainly miss those senior girls, both as players and as people.”

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