Girls Tennis: Wingers open with third-place finish at Pine City

Red Wing finished third Monday in its season-opening tournament in Pine City.

The Wingers trailed tournament winner Bemidji and Rochester Lourdes. The tournament was a random individual draw with team points awarded on how an individual finished.

Bemidji tallied 34 points to win the eight-team tournament while Lourdes had 25 points and Red Wing had 24 points.

“I was really pleased with everybody,” Wingers head coach Randy Decker said. “Our singles played very well. I’ve been pleasantly surprised.”

Kristen Anderson and Morley Struss both played at No. 4 singles for Red Wing and the duo provided the team’s lone tournament victory.

Emily Stegora played at No. 1 singles and went 1-2 on the day. Stegora won her first match 6-1, 6-0, but lost her second against Pine City’s Natalie Cahill 5-7, 7-5, 7-4 and her third 6-7, 6-3, 7-4 against Bemidji’s Jessica Solberg.

Freshman Solveig Christenson lost in the finals at No. 2 singles to Bemidji’s Claudia Belleiu 6-2, 6-4, but won her first match 6-1, 6-0 and her second 6-4, 6-2.

Red Wing’s No. 1 doubles team of Katie Kelly and Megan Clemons finished third with a 7-5, 6-2 win over Pine City after it defeated Mounds Park Academy 5-7, 6-2, 7-4, but fell 6-0, 6-2 to Bemidji.

Eighth-grader Emily Otteson finished third at No. 3 singles after she won her first match 6-3, 6-2, dropped her second 6-3, 6-3 and finished up with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Staples-Motley’s Linsey Johnson.

Sophomores McKenzie Muelken and Mati Bodensteiner played two matches at No. 3 doubles and dropped the first match to Staples-Motley’s Emily Israelson and Nikki Edin 6-0, 6-1 and won their next match 6-4, 6-3 over Mounds Park Academy. Juniors Serena Feeham and Lexi Boek won their one match at No. 3 doubles 6-0, 6-0.

At No. 2 doubles senior Maddie Flack and sophomore Lauren Brooks lost their first match to Bemidji’s Kenzie Schultz and Amy Frosaker 6-3, 7-5. The duo bounced back to beat Pine City’s Shelby Furber and Rachel Krautbauer 6-3, 2-6, 7-5. Brooks teamed with Katie Carlson for the final match, which they won over Litchfield’s Emily Smith and Alexa Desens 6-0, 6-0.

The Wingers face North St. Paul Thursday in North St. Paul.

Tags: girls tennis, red wing, sports, prep