MEDFORD GIRLS TENNIS - Tennis team gets two meets in at

MEDFORD GIRLS TENNIS

Untimely rain postponed Medford’s girls tennis meet at Rhinelander Thursday, but the Raiders did get two dual meets back Friday that rain had wiped out earlier in the season.

Medford went back to Baldwin-Woodville, site of the season-opening quad that was rained out on Aug. 17. The Raiders lost two close 4-3 duals to Middle Border Conference squads Baldwin-Woodville and Amery. The defeats knocked Medford back to 6-5 overall. Lakeland was also at Friday’s quad, but the GNC rivals did not face each other. The TBirds beat Amery 6-1 and lost to Baldwin-Woodville 4-3.

Against the home team, Medford went 2-2 in the singles matches. Makenna Tlusty was pushed to three sets by Jacque Kroening but pulled out the win at number-three singles 64, 1-6, 10-5. Emily Kiselicka took the numberfour match over Katie Kroening 6-3, 6-3.

The number-three doubles team of Chloe Kapitz and Bayley Metz was Medford’s third winner, defeating Kalli Bauer and Salem Tumax 6-3, 6-1.

Maggie Jensen beat Medford’s Audrey Ruesch in the flight-one singles match 6-1, 63 and Charlee Sorenson beat Raider Natalie Preuss in flight two 6-2, 6-1. In doubles play, Blackhawks Kylie Kastel and Shannon Fritts downed Medford’s Indya Mann and Grace Holmes 6-2, 6-2 in flight one and Lola Peavey and Evelyn Dietzman beat Raiders Sydnie Peterson and Hannah Dahl 6-3, 6-1.

Against Amery, Medford earned another 2-2 split in singles play. Kiselicka won again at number-four, beating Myka McCarty. The first set went to a tiebreaker, which Kiselicka won 7-5 to take the set 7-6. She completed the straight-set win by taking set two 6-3. Preuss won her number-two match 6-2, 6-4 over Charolette Stewart 6-2, 6-4.

Lily Holmes and Rachel Daniels filled the number-three doubles spot and took a 6-2, 75 win over Olivia Chavez and Addie Gould.

The meet included two three-set matches and both went Amery’s way.

At number-two doubles, Amery’s Sala Hayes and Vanessa Spataro swept Peterson and Dahl 6-0 in the first set. But Medford’s duo stayed alive, outlasting the Warriors in a tiebreaker in the second set. They took the tiebreaker 7-5 to win the set 7-6. But in the 10-point match tiebreaker, Amery’s team emerged victorious 10-8.

In the top singles match, Faith Halverson got the early lead against Ruesch 6-3, but Ruesch came back to win the second set 6-4 and force a 10-point match tiebreaker. Halverson won it 10-7 Kelly Fern and Marissa Fisk beat Mann and Grace Holmes 7-6 (3), 6-4 in a tightlycontested number-one doubles match. Lyla Stone handed Tlusty her first loss of 2024, 75, 6-3 in flight-three singles.

Medford hosts a solid Newman Catholic squad today, Thursday, at 4:30 p.m. in Great Northern Conference play. The Raiders will spend Friday and Saturday at the Wausau West Invitational before going to Columbus Catholic Tuesday. No make-up date has been announced yet for Thursday’s postponement with the Hodags.