Krug/Ruesch team, Preuss qualify for sectional tennis meet

WIAA DIV. 1 GIRLS TENNIS

Back in Division 1 competition for the first time since 2006, the Medford Raiders got wins in three flights and advanced in two of them at Monday’s WIAA subsectional girls tennis meet in Rhinelander.

Senior Masaeda Krug and Audrey Ruesch went into Wednesday’s WIAA Division 1 Eau Claire Memorial sectional with a chance to qualify for next weekend’s state tournament by winning their lone match Monday at number-one doubles.

Junior Natalie Preuss went 2-0 at number-four singles and advanced to Eau Claire in contention for a sectional flight championship.

Senior Madison Clarkson and sophomore Makenna Tlusty won their first match at number-three doubles, but came up short in round two, where a win also would’ve sent them to the sectional.

As a team, the Raiders scored eight points to place fifth out of eight teams at the subsectional ahead of D.C. Everest (6), Wausau East (2) and Merrill (0). Wausau West placed first for the day with 20 points, followed by Lakeland (16), Marshfield (14) and Rhinelander (10).

West went into Wednesday’s sectional trailing Eau Claire Memorial by four points. Memorial won its subsectional by six points over Hudson.

Seeded third, Krug and Ruesch improved to 11-6 by dominating sixth-seeded Brianna Cook and Makenna Kampmann of D.C. Everest 6-1, 6-0 on Monday morning. That was the Raiders’ third win of the season against the Evergreens’ duo.

The win put Krug and Ruesch into a sectional quarterfinal match at Eau Claire Wednesday against New Richmond’s Lily Brinkman and Bella Baillargeon (23-3), the second seed from Monday’s Eau Claire Memorial subsectional. An upset win there would send Krug and Ruesch to state.

The winner of that match faces either Savannah Barton and Kristina Ouimette of Lakeland (17-4), the top seed from the Rhinelander subsectional, or Isa Gamez and Sam Jacobsen (15-5), the fourth seed from the Memorial subsectional, in Wednesday’s semifinals.

The other side of Wednesday’s number-one doubles bracket has Livy Parrett and Olivia Zavaleta of Eau Claire Memorial (12-3) facing Sophia Morrell and Ava Paape of Marshfield (17-13) and Natalie Nolan and Emily Mofle of Rice Lake (153) meeting Chloe Vandenberg and Miranda Nelson of Wausau West (21-12).

Preuss kept her season going with two straight-set victories Monday. As the second seed, she swept Merrill freshman Claire Hintz 6-1, 6-1 and then took care of Lakeland’s Ellie Baker, the third seed, for the fourth time this season 6-3, 6-1. Those two met Sept. 21 for the Great Northern Conference championship in the fourth flight, a match Preuss won 6-4, 6-4.

As a number-four player, Preuss (18-2) is not eligible for state. In her four-player sectional bracket, she was set to face Eau Claire Memorial’s Lucy Willems (28-2) in the semifinal round. Menomonie’s Isabel Sorenson (14-5) and Marshfield’s Ashley Grancorvitz (26-4) were paired in the oth- er semifinal. Winners were to meet for the championship while losers played for third.

Playing as the third seed at numberthree doubles, Clarkson and Tlusty opened with a 6-3, 6-1 win over D.C. Everest’s sixth-seeded team of Sandra Brierton and Kaylee Dunow. It was their second win of the season over that Everest pairing. That led to a second-round rematch with Lakeland’s second-seeded team of Lila Biller and Alyssa Erickson (18-4), which the T-Birds won 6-1, 7-5. Those doubles team met for third time this season, with Lakeland winning the two big ones, this post-season match and the GNC title match at the flight.

Clarkson and Tlusty went 14-4 together playing in doubles flights two and three.

At number-two doubles, Marshfield’s third-seeded freshman team of Audrey Luedtke and Maddie Kundinger beat Medford’s junior team of Grace Holmes and Indya Mann 6-1, 6-1. Holmes and Mann went 13-13 together bouncing between flights one and two.

Medford knew wins in the top three singles brackets were going to be hard to get.

In flight one, second-seeded Tori Riopel of Rhinelander advanced with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Medford’s seventh-seeded senior Marcy Razink (2-12). Fourth-seeded Dawsyn Barkus was a 6-4, 6-2 winner over Medford’s fifth-seeded senior Jaylin Machon (9-14) in flight two. In flight three, third-seeded Shayla Coppenger of Rhinelander defeated Medford’s sixthseeded senior Morgan Strebig 6-0, 6-2.

Medford’s Audrey Ruesch watches her backhand return fly over the net during number-one doubles play at Monday’s WIAA Division 1 Rhinelander subsectional. Ruesch and Masaeda Krug beat D.C. Everest’s Brianna Cook and Makenna Kampmann of D.C. Everest 6-1, 6-0 to advance to Wednesday’s sectional.JEREMY MAYO/NORTHWOODS RIVER NEWS

Masaeda Krug