Photo By Raymundo Frasquillo: Instead of a high five, Lynnie Neilson taps her racket with that of doubles partner Kaitlyn Lunt following a good play. The duo is 4-2 and both 5-2 in singles play.
By Raymundo Frasquillo
DUNCAN – The Duncan tennis girls opened their initial week of the 2018 campaign with a 5-4 win in Willcox Feb. 27, a 0-9 loss in Thatcher March 1, and wins of 5-4 over Saint David and 6-3 over Tombstone during the H.T. Clothier Invitational Tournament in Duncan March 3.
Duncan posted identical 6-3 scores in Superior March 6 and in Pima March 8 during week two plus edged the Wildcats 5-4 in Morenci March 13 during week three.
The Wildkats host Superior Thursday, March 22 and Saint David Friday, March 23 following a road match in Safford Tuesday, March 20.
Duncan is 5-2 after seven duels, going 23-19 in singles and 13-8 in doubles, including four forfeits, two each in singles and doubles.
In singles, No. 2 sophomore Kaitlyn Lunt and No. 5 sophomore Lennie Neilson are both 5-2, No. 1 junior Brooklyn Kempton and No. 4 freshman Melissa Claridge 4-3 apiece, No.3 senior Natalie Jensen 3-2, and No. 6 freshman Kinsley Rapier (2-5).
The No. 1 Kempton – Claridge duo is 4-3, No. 2 Lunt – Neilson 4-2, No. 3 Jensen – Rapier 4-1, and Claridge – Rapier 1-0.
Duncan – 5, Morenci – 4
Duncan entered Morenci a 5-member squad, forfeiting a singles and doubles match.
The wins were by Kempton (10-7 over Reona Alvarez), Lunt (10-0 over Keonna Cortez), and Claridge (forfeit after an injury to Corrie White) in singles and by Kempton – Claridge (8-5 over Alvarez – Cortez) and Lunt -Neilson (8-0 over Gonzalez – Uranzorig) in doubles.
For Morenci, Monica Gonzalez won a tie-breaker 10-8 over Neilson following a 10-10 deadlock and Madalyn Wright slipped past Rapier 11-9. The other two wins were by forfeits.
Duncan – 6, Pima – 3
In singles, it was Kempton (6-0, 6-3 over Kamry Bryce) and both Jensen and Claridge with two 6-4 scores over Reah Matthews and Brookie Bryce, respectively, and a 10-4 tie-breaker win for Neilson, after a 6-2 first set win and 2-6 set two loss to Madison Taylor.
In doubles, Lunt – Neilson (8-5 over B. Bryce – Taylor), and Jensen – Rapier (8-6 over Matthews – Wood) won.
For Pima, Alani Blair got a 10-6 tie-breaker win after splitting 6-4 sets with Lunt and Kiora Wood (6-4 twice over Rapier) in singles, plus Bryce – Blair in a 9-7 tie breaker over Kempton – Claridge during a Pro-8 doubles format.
Duncan – 6, Superior – 3
Duncan won six head-to-head pairings, four singles and two doubles, with wins of 10-2 for Kempton, 10-3 for Lunt, 10-8 for Claridge, and 10-7 for Neilson in singles plus 8-1 for Kempton – Claridge and 8-2 for Lunt – Nielson in doubles.
The losses were 6-10 by Rapier plus two forfeits, one each in singles and doubles.
Thatcher – 9, Duncan – 0
The Eagles made it a clean sweep, taking all six singles and three doubles pairing from the Wildkats.
Corinne Bryce (6-0, 6-2 over Kempton), Lacie Whitmer (6-0 twice over Lunt), Ashlyn McWhorter (6-3, 6-0 over Jensen), Lexee Scarborough (6-1, 6-0 over Claridge), Emily Konopnicki (6-1, 6-3 over Neilson), and Sydnie Alder (6-0 twice over Rapier) each recorded singles’ wins.
Bryce – Whitmer (10-1 over Kempton – Claridge), McWhorter – Scarborough (10-1 over Lunt – Neilson), and Konopnicki – Alder (10-5 over Jensen – Rapier) got the doubles’ wins.
Willcox – 5, Duncan – 4
In singles, Lunt used a 7-2 tie-breaker for a 9-8 win over Abby Bull, Neilson defeated Sydney Hansen 8-1, and Rapier downed Jada Reynolds 8-2.
In doubles, Jensen – Rapier downed Hansen – Reynolds 10-1.
For Willcox, it was Allison Melton (8-5 over Kempton), Isis Gijzenberg (8-6 over Jensen), and Kayla Ellison (9-7 over Claridge) in singles.
The doubles wins were by Melton – Gijzenberg (10-3 over Kempton – Claridge) and Bull – Ellison (10-1 over Lunt – Neilson).
