Loggers jumpstart season with double dual

The Loggers tennis team split with Polson on Tuesday, with the boys winning 5-2 and the girls falling 7-0 in the teams’ Northwestern A Conference dual openers.

In the second dual of the day, Hamilton swept Libby 5-2 in both the boys and girls matches.

In the boys’ dual with Polson, Libby swept three doubles matches to key their 5-2 victory.

“The boys played extremely well and came out ready to play,” Loggers coach Kyle Hannah said.

In singles action, Walter Briones prevailed in both of his matches, dropping only one game in each.

“Walter played very strong,” assistant coach Terry Oedewaldt said. “It’s just the beginning for him, his confidence will only increase as he gains more experience.”

Cody Wood was also able to earn a pair of victories on Tuesday. Wood dominated in his match against Polson and earned a win against Hamilton by way of a tiebreaker.

“Wood had a little letdown in his second match, but was definitely the better player on the court and hung in for the win,” Oedewaldt said.

Oedewaldt offered praise for the doubles team of Isabella Martineau and Paula Fernandez.

“They were thrown in as a doubles team without any practice,” he said. “By the end of the day they got over their nerves and I was really proud of their performance.”

Although the girls didn’t earn a victory against Polson, Hannah was pleased with their performance. “Polson has an extremely tough girls team,” he said. “Most of our kids came away from their first match with something specific they need to work on.”

Oedewaldt said his returning players were bothered by their losses. “They shouldn’t have been upset because they all worked hard. Some of the losses were closer than the score looked,” he said.

Starting the season with a back-to-back dual was a little difficult for the team, but Oedewaldt said it was the way the schedule worked out and the team was ready for it.

The Loggers travel to Troy today for a dual with the Trojans at 3:30 p.m. Libby will host Stevensville at noon Saturday.

Boys

Libby 5, Polson 2

Singles - Walter Briones, Libby, def. Quaid Karlan, 6-1, 6-0; Cody Wood, Libby, def. Coin Kenney, 6-2, 6-2; Tim Russell def. Rayson Arnold, Libby, 6-0, 6-1; Matt Sitter, def. Raymond Sadewasser, Libby, 6-1, 6-1

Doubles - Jason Brant/Colin Maloney, Libby, def. Cadis Chowning/Tommy Mercer, 6-2, 7-5; Gabe Peck/Ryan Nagle, Libby, def. Scott Sicz/Jaron Morgan, 6-1, 6-4; Jhamaal Sykes/Erik Lauer, Libby, def. Josh Kinzle/Kabe Forman-Webster, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3.   

Libby 3, Hamilton 4

Singles - Walter Briones, Libby, def. Alex Raymond, 6-0, 6-1; Cody Wood, Libby, def. Jeremy Hankell, 6-7, 6-2, 8-6; Spencer Tredik, def. Jhamaal Sykes, Libby, 6-3, 6-3; Trevor Richards, def. Erik Lauer, Libby, 6-3, 6-2

Doubles - Jason Brant/Colin Maloney def. Mason Tredik/Alton Maclean, 7-5, 6-4, 3-2 (7-2)

Girls

Libby 0, Polson 7

Singles - Marlee Congdon, def. Sarah McBride, Libby, 6-2, 6-2; Mollie Lemm, def. Katie Alspaw, Libby, 6-0, 6-1; Natalee Wheeler, def. Shannon Reny, Libby, 6-1, 6-1; Tessa Nunlist, def. Laurynn Lauer, Libby, 6-2, 6-1.

Doubles - Taylor Rost/Shawna Lenz, def. Jenna Barrick/Mackenzie Cosgriff, Libby, 6-2, 6-1; Olivia Hewston/Cassie Calyle, def. Cloie Boardner/Dani Hawthorne, Libby, 6-3, 6-1; Kyler Lundeen/Hunter Tamcke, def. Paula Hernandez/Isabelle Martineau, Libby, 6-2, 6-4

Libby 2, Hamilton 5

Rachel Grime, def. McKenzie Cosgriff, 6-3, 6-3; Autumn Rose, def. Dani Hawthorne, Libby, 6-3, 6-3; Colleen May, def. Sarah McBride, Libby, 6-2, 6-2; Katie Alspaw won by forfeit

Doubles - Sarah Trihn/Sydni Rose, def. Jenna Barrick/Cloie Boardner, Libby, 5-7, 7-6 (2-7) (2-7); Isabella Martineau/Paula Fernandez, Libby, def. Emily H./Kaylun H., 6-1, 6-0; Shannon Reny /Laurynn Lauer won by forfeit