MOUNT VERNON — The Mount Vernon girls tennis team hit a mid-season bump in the road. The Yellow Jackets dropped a pair of 3-2 decisions on Wednesday and Thursday, losing a mid-week home match to archrival Delaware at Mount Vernon Nazarene University, and then sustaining a tough loss on the road at Marysville on Friday. Both losses come on the heels of Tuesday’s 3-2 loss to St. Francis DeSales to make it three straight in the loss column.
Mount Vernon’s Marah Staats returns a ball in a match against Delaware’s Lily Tope on Aug. 19 at Mount Vernon Nazarene University. Staats won her match 7-5, 6-0, but the Yellow Jackets lost 3-2 to the rival Pacers, the middle of a three-game losing streak.
No. 1 singles player Justine Hull also split her matches, losing a close one to Delaware’s Alana Kay (3-6, 6-2, 3-6) while winning in straight sets in Marysville (6-3, 6-2).
“Our favorite match score seems to be 2-3, but unfortunately, we have been the two for the last three matches,” Tier said. “Marah played her usual, grind-it-out style to get a win (in Marysville). Justine Hull adapted her game to fit her opponent’s style to record her third win of the season. In Delaware, Lucy and Marah won their singles.”
The last couple of days have been tough on Mount Vernon’s doubles teams.
Molly Clow and Jessie Gourley lost a close second-doubles match, 4-6, 6-7 (3), to Delaware’s Meredith Keller and Chloe Kannally. The Jackets’ first-doubles team of Emma Annett and Anna Dinnen dropped a 0-6, 1-6 verdict to Delaware’s Eliza Riggs and Sophie Midura. Both Mount Vernon doubles teams lost in straight sets to Marysville in Thursday.
After a string of seven consecutive matches interrupted only by last weekend, the Jackets will get a break, having only one match next week at Jonathan Alder.
“That will provide us with some much-needed practice time,” said Tier.
Against Columbus DeSales, Mount Vernon won two of three singles matches at Woodward Park in Columbus on Tuesday, but the Stallions lost only one game in doubles play to win the day, 3-2.
Ogle dominated Evie Brainard at second doubles, 6-2, 6-1; and Staats survived a 7-6, first-set victory at No. 3 over Maddie Hill, taking the match with a 6-2, second-set win.
Hull dropped a 6-1, 6-3 match at first singles.
Emma Annett and Anna Dinnen won the only game in doubles at the No. 1 spot, eventually falling to Kate Jolly and Ella Dingman, 6-1, 6-0. Pascaline Ndayishimye and Amelia Zaremba blanked Clow and Gourley at second doubles, 6-0, 6-0.
Leah Gourley had the best reserve score, winning four games despite falling, 6-4. Faith Hunter and Grace Mayville lost their singles matches by identical 8-1 scores, and Hanna Humphrey and Carly Tracey were blanked in doubles, 8-0.
