Card boys' tennis: Langenfeld, Storm advance in Section 8AA boys' tennis

Talk about it

Mike Langenfeld and Austin Storm picked up the lone win for the Cardinal tennis program in the Section 8AA singles tournament last Thursday.

Langenfeld and Storm beat Levi Paul and Aaron Clafton of Sauk Rapids in the opening round. They then went on to face the second seeded team from Bemidji and fell in straight sets.

“Mike and Austin played well and overpowered their opponents by getting to the net and making good decisions [in the first round],” head coach Dave Ronning said. “In their second round, they had to play the No. 2 seed in the doubles bracket from Bemidji, with one of the players being a state entrant from last year. Mike and Austin did not play badly. They were simply overmatched and could not overcome the experience of the opponents.”

Ben LeVahn and Trevor Grandgenett fought through a first set tiebreaker to take an early lead in their doubles match. Taylor Lovaas and Cameron Keffmeyer of St. Cloud Tech made sure that was the only set they would take, though, by winning 6-2, 6-2 in the second and the third.

LeVahn and Grandgenett were paired together after Matt Peterson suffered a sprained ankle the night before the tournament.

“I know Matt did not want his senior season to end in this way and my heart goes out to him,” Ronning said.

Dustin Lee and Mack Wadi took the court for Alexandria in singles competition. Lee battled Ian Johnson from Apollo and came up short in a 6-3, 6-4 decision.

“Dustin played the No. 4 seed in the first round and gave him all he could handle,” Ronning said. “There were numerous opportunities for Dustin to take command of the match, but his opponent was able to fight back time and time again and denied Dustin the chance to advance.”

Wadi also lost in straight sets. He took on Jesse Schneeburger of Fergus Falls and fell short in a 6-0, 6-1 match.

“Mack also played a very nice match as he faced off against the second singles player from Fergus Falls,” Ronning said. “Mack held his own all the way through but the experience of his opponent having played singles all year was too much to overcome.”

SECTION 8AA

SINGLES/DOUBLES TOURNAMENT

SINGLES – Ian Johnson (AP) def. Dustin Lee, 6-3, 6-4; Jesse Schneeburger (FF) def. Mack Wadi – 6-0, 6-1

DOUBLES – First round – Taylor Lovaas/Cameron Keffmeyer (TECH) def. Ben LeVahn/Trevor Grandgenett, 6-7 (6), 6-2, 6-2; Mike Langenfeld/Austin Storm (A) def. Levi Paul/Aaron Clafton, 6-2, 6-1; Second round – Ben Holter/Adam Holter (BEM) def. Langenfeld/Storm, 6-2, 6-0

Tags: alexandria sports, sports, home, team, cardinals, boys, tennis, section, 8aa