The Wayland boys’ varsity tennis team Wednesday fought O-K Gold Conference rival South Christian to a 4-4 draw, the second time the Wildcats have tied this season.
Coach Ben Adams said, “Fans were not disappointed as quality tennis was played on all courts.”
At first singles, Christian Sieffert took on a new player with an unconventional style, who took the match 6-0, 6-1. Jackson Chesley found his rhythm at second singles and took out his opponent 6-4, 6-1.
Adams said Andrew Murphy kept the crowd on the edge of their seats for his two-hour match at third singles. He lost the first set 3-6, but battled back against his talented opponent to take the 2nd set 7-5, forcing a full third set in the conference match.
“Andrew jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the third, one game away from outright victory. However, his opponent did not go quietly and battled back to make the third set 6-6, forcing a match deciding tie-breaker. With the crowd on his side, Andrew stayed consistent enough to win the tie-breaker 7-4.”
By that time, all the other matches were wrapped up and Andrew’s match brought the score to an even 4-4 tie for the day.
At fourth singles, Nolan Ritz took his Sailor foe 6-1, 6-2 to continue his unbeaten streak in the O-K Gold.
At first doubles, Elijah Kincaid and Brady Atwell fought a tough match, but ultimately were overtaken with a score of 5-7, 3-6. The story was the same at second doubles as Mark Musgrave and Austin Graham fell 3-6, 2-6.
At third doubles, Cam Sieffert and Carson Beck “fought a great match for being paired up for the first time due to a late illness. The team came together in a great match that was mostly even most of the time.”
In the end, Cam and Carson were victorious, 7-5, 7-5.
At fourth doubles, Chase Robinson and Garrett Spoor battled a talented team all day and were overpowered 1-6, 1-6.
“Even though the match was a 4-4 tie, the Wildcats came together as a team to pull through and keep pace with a talented, well coached team,” Adams said. “The heart of the O-K Gold season is on the horizon, with Grand Rapids Catholic Central and Cedar Springs coming up next week.”
Wayland is 3-1-2 on the season overall.
