The Cheney boys’ tennis team hit a bit of a rough spot this past week, losing duels to Lakeside and West Valley. However, the Blackhawks ended the week on a high note after they picked up a victory over Rogers.
On April 1, Lakeside defeated Cheney, 5-2, snapping the Blackhawks’ undefeated streak.
Doubles partners Shogo Starr and Adam Passey moved to singles and became the only winners for Cheney. Starr (No. 3 singles) defeated Michaels Stotts, 6-1, 6-2 while Passey (No. 4 singles) beat Tom Schueller, 6-2, 6-1.
Cheney did not have it any easier in their first Great Northern League dual of the season against West Valley, April 2, which had been rescheduled due to rain.
The Eagles swept the Blackhawks in singles competition. Head coach Jesse Erickson said Mason Van Stone (No. 1 singles) and Jordan Kauwe (No. 3 singles) had close matches against more experienced opponents.
“Mason’s opponent was the second-best player in the league last year and they had 20-stroke rallies,” Erickson said. “When a game gets close, we really want to put the pressure on our opponents and be really aggressive. We’re working on that.”
Passey and Starr returned to No. 1 doubles where they defeated West Valley’s Jon Travis and Zach Davis, 4-6, 6-4 and 7-6 (10-8). After dropping the first set, Passey and Starr battled back to win the match.
Luke Huguenin and Britton Williams (No. 2 doubles) also won a tough contest against West Valley’s Ricky Miller and Kyle Love, 6-4, 6-4.
The next day, Cheney returned to their winning ways after they beat Rogers, 6-1.
At No. 2 singles, Solomon Springberry snapped his two-match losing streak after he defeated Rogers’ Kaden Hassett, 6-1, 6-2.
Axtell (No. 3 singles) picked up another win after he shut out the Pirates’ Michael Paulson, 6-0, 6-0.
Jordan Kauwe (No. 4 singles) once again found himself in a close match against Rogers’ Taylor Knott, who he beat 4-6, 6-2, 6-4.
Passey and Starr (No. 1 doubles) remained undefeated in doubles after they scored an impressive win against the Pirates’ Monish Gurung and Tate Dunbar, 6-2, 6-1.
Luke Huguenin and Britton Williams (No. 2 doubles) also picked up a big win over Rogers’ Isaiah Hollingsworth and Eddie Aldana (Rogers) 6-0, 6-0.
Brandon Foster and Tristan Bennett (No. 3 doubles) defeated Van Cawi Sang and Mason Raymond, 6-0, 6-1.
The boys’ tennis team will rest up for the next week, then travel to Pullman to face the Greyhounds in a GNL dual, April 17. The next day they head to Post Falls to face the Trojans.
“We had a bump in the road but we came back and ended the week strong,” Erickson said. “Hopefully the weather holds up and we get some solid practices in during the break.”
Al Stover can be reached at [email protected].
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