By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
As the fall tennis season hits its final stretch, two of the area’s top teams in Springfield Catholic and Republic clashed in a pre-district tune up.
Utilizing a mix of veteran experience and youthful exuberance, the visiting Lady Irish rolled to an 8-1 victory Monday night over a team that had yet to lose a regular-season dual match.
Catholic raced out to an early 3-0 start thanks to a sweep in doubles play.
Anna Rader and Casey Lee downed Kaitlyn Snyder and Molly Womack in No. 1 singles 8-3, while Erin Jarvis and Cecilia Bailey took the No. 2 match over Heather Georges and Katie Stiles 8-4.
With both matches finishing early, the spotlight turned to a spirited No. 3 match between Catholic’s Claire Griesemer and Ashley Andrews and Republic’s Carly McAfee and Jordyn Gianopolus.
After a quick start from the Lady Tigers, Griesemer and Andrews found themselves in a 3-0 hole.
Worse yet, an injury to Andrews a couple points later temporarily halted play.
“Coming into the match, we’re both still recovering from injuries,” Andrews said. “I took a volley to the shoulder, and I was down for a couple minutes there. It really motivated me to win a lot.”
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE MATCH
A quick pep talk from Catholic head coach Martin VerSteeg, and the girls trotted back onto the court.
“Our coach came out and talked to us after Ashley got hit,” Griesemer said. “He said, ‘you girls got this’ and, really, just gave us some encouraging words. I think, most of the time, whenever we either get upset or get more motivation to win, then we start doing better.”
Do better they did … coming back in the match to take a crucial 8-6 victory.
VerSteeg praised the duo for battling through adversity and some nagging injuries during the match.
“[Griesemer and Andrews] got second in the Springfield Invitational,” VerSteeg said. “I think they were a little bit overconfident, and they’re hurting; those two girls have got some injuries there, but they played through the pain and finally figured it out. When they can figure it out, most of the time, they’ll win.”
With a sizable deficit heading into doubles, things didn’t get any easier for Republic.
Catholic’s Anna Rader, a top-five state finisher in each of her previous three years, rolled to an 8-0 victory in No. 1 singles.
“Actually, I told her this is the most complete match she’s had against a fairly tough opponent,” VerSteeg said. “[Snyder] took her 8-5 two weeks ago in the Republic Tournament. We changed some things around with her approach, and she executed them; she always executes everything fantastic.”
Casey Lee put up another 8-0 score in No. 3 singles, downing Molly Womack.
As for No. 2 singles, a different story emerged.
Undefeated on the season, Republic’s Heather Georges survived an early 3-0 deficit before rallying for an 8-6 victory over Erin Jarvis.
Republic head coach Eric Hanson was pleased with the senior’s resilience in the match.
“Heather’s just one of those players,” Hanson said. “She’s not going to beat you with the cleanest strokes, she’s not going to beat you with a monster serve but she’ll keep digging you around and, pretty soon, there she is. I can’t explain it, frankly … it’s just a way that Heather’s found to win matches.”
Georges’ victory turned out to be the lone tally for the Lady Tigers on the afternoon; however, Hanson wasn’t discouraged in the least. Catholic provided a match-up similar to what lurks out in the upcoming Class 2 District 11 tournament for the Lady Tigers.
“If you just play well and work to your potential, everything will take care of itself,’” Hanson said. “If you play well, work hard, do your absolute best and still lose, then they were just better than you. This is probably the best team we’re going to see until districts, and this team beat Central and lost a close one to Kickapoo.”
After a quick turn, both teams are back in action Tuesday, Sept. 19. Catholic (12-1) hosts Bolivar, while Republic travels to Branson.
Varsity Final: Springfield Catholic – 8, Republic – 1
Varsity Singles
1) Anna Rader, Catholic def. Kaitlyn Snyder, Republic (8-0)
2) Heather Georges, Republic def. Erin Jarvis, Catholic (8-6)
3) Casey Lee, Catholic def. Molly Womack, Republic (8-0)
4) Claire Griesemer, Catholic def. Carly McAtee, Republic (8-2)
5) Cecilia Bailey, Catholic def. Jordyn Gianopolus, Republic (8-6)
6) Ashley Andrews, Catholic def. Katie Stiles, Republic (8-3)
Varsity Doubles
1) Rader/Jarvis, Catholic, def. Snyder/Womack, Republic (8-3)
2) Lee/Griesemer, Catholic def. Georges/Stiles, Republic (8-4)
3) Bailey/Andrews, Catholic def. McAtee/Gianopolus, Republic (8-6)
