Beagle, Andersen win titles at Libby Tennis Invitational

The 2024 Libby Tennis Invitational is in the books and the hosts celebrated winning Boys Singles 1s and Boys Singles 2s.

The invitational, which featured teams from all over western Montana, saw sunny days with no rain at the Community Courts and Libby Racquet Club. More than 100 players from Troy, Ronan, Whitefish, Cut Bank, Bigfork, Loyola, Stevensville, Columbia Falls joined the Loggers at the Community Courts April 19-20. A total of 164 matches were played, according to Libby head coach Kyle Hannah.

"The community support we receive is tremendous," Hannah said. "Many parents who came to watch their kids told me that they loved all the friendly people and owners of all the businesses in town. Thank you to the many business and restaurants for making our tournament one of the best in the state. Also a huge thank you to Betty Barada and family for allowing the school to use their courts. Without the use of the courts, we couldn't have gotten all the matches done in the two days."  

In the Boys Singles 1s, Logger junior Ryan Beagle was the champion. He opened with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Stevensville’s Angus Trangmoe, then repeated the scores in a semifinal win over Loyola’s Dillon Taylor.

Beagle faced Ronan’s Beau Decker, who proved to be a bigger test. Beagle won a hard-fought first set in a tiebreaker, 7-6 (7-5). He then cruised in the second set to a 6-1 win and the title.

The Loggers kept it going in Boys Singles 2s as Tristan Andersen claimed three straight-set wins for the win.

Andersen topped Loyola’s Nathaniel Read-Smith, 6-0, 6-3, and Stevensville’s Jeremy Madruga, 6-1, 6-3, to reach the finals. There he faced Whitefish’s Jack Oehlerich and Andersen’s 6-3 and 6-4 win made him a champ.

In Boys Singles 3s, Xavier Reatz’s third-place finish kept the roll going for the Loggers.

Reatz opened with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Bigfork’s Kimball Richmond before meeting Whitefish’s Walt Seigmund. The players battled before Seigmund claimed a 7-5, 6-2 win. The Bulldog went on to win the bracket.

For Reatz, the drop into the consolation bracket mattered little as he blanked Bigfork’s Gunner Busic, 8-0, and Stevensville’s Jason Agosino, 8-3, for third place.

In Boys Singles 4s, Teague Thompson placed fourth after a 2-2 finish.

In Boys Doubles 1s, Libby’s Alderic Martineau and Dylan Warner finished 1-2. In Boys Doubles 3s, Libby’s Morgan Davis and Eric Thompson also finished 1-2. 

"It was a great showing by many of our athletes," Hannah said. "Savanah Lucas and Kayla Hoff showed up to play and did extremely well in the No. 2 bracket! Ryan is looking tough and Tyler remains undefeated as a No. 2! Xavier is hitting the ball much more consistently and doing well. Ellie and Allie came up a bit short in the championship, but are starting to pick up where they left off a year ago. We have not only some of the best tennis players in Class A, but we have the best kids and parents a coach could ask for."

In the girls brackets, Libby had a runner-up finish and a third.

In Girls Singles 1s, Marissa Hollingsworth finished 0-2. Maggie Fantozzi finished 0-2 in Girls Singles 2s. In Girls Singles 3s, Libby’s Ryelie Lisle was 2-2 and Aubrey Davis was 0-2.

In Girls Doubles 1s, Allie Thorstenson and Ellie Andreessen were 2-1 and placed second after falling in the finals to Whitefish’s Ainsley Scott and Maggie Mercer, 6-2, 6-1.

Thorstenson and Andreessen made the finals with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Ronan’s Sara McConnell and Amy Snyder, and a 6-4, 6-4 win over Cut Bank’s Lauren Yttredahl and Kellyn Dunaway.

Also in Girls Doubles 1s, the team of Elaina Covington and Kaitlyn Canary finished 1-2.

In Girls Doubles 2s, Kayla Huff and Savanah Lucas placed third after finishing 3-1. They teamed up to beat Stevensville’s Nika Hulling and Avery Sacry, 6-1, 6-3, in the consolation finals. Their only loss was to eventual champion Camry Kelch and Zoey Marzo.

In Girls Doubles 3s, Ashlynn James and Shya Huck finished 1-2.

In 14 brackets, Whitefish claimed titles in 10 while Libby and Loyola each had two.

Libby is back in action at 1 p.m. today at Bigfork. The Logger’s next home match is at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 4 against Columbia Falls.

Libby's Tyler Andersen lunges to return a shot against Loyola's Nathaniel Read-Smith in the quarterfinals of the Boys Singles 2s bracket Friday, April 19, 2024, at the Libby Invitational. (Scott Shindledecker/The Western News)

    Libby's Kayla Hoff returns a shot against Stevensville as her doubles teammate Savanah Lucas watches in the quarterfinals Friday, April 19, 2024, at the Libby Tennis Invitational. (Scott Shindledecker/The Western News)