Card girls' tennis: Alexandria still in the hunt for a CLC title

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The Alexandria tennis team set the stage for an important battle with St. Cloud Tech last night by taking a 7-0 win over Rocori last Thursday.

The win over the Spartans was the 10th straight for Alexandria. The Cardinals upped their record to 16-1 overall and 7-1 in the Central Lakes Conference in the process. They had a shot at evening things up with CLC leader St. Cloud Tech last night, Tuesday, if they could get a win over the Tigers.

“The girls battled through some slow starts at several positions,” head coach Dave Ronning said of the win over Rocori. “But once we settled in, we played some good tennis and got the win.”

Six of the seven wins for Alexandria came in straight sets. Rebecca Lukes, Ellie Bergstrand and Carly Snell took care of things in two, while Bria Schueler persevered in a third set to win at fourth singles.

Jessica Larson and Jenna Hedstrom set the tone with a 7-5, 6-2 win at first doubles. Rachel Sjostrand and Marissa Wheeler needed just two sets as well, while Kim Wilkins and Miranda Sater continued their domination of third doubles with a 6-0, 6-0 win.

“I am so proud of our girls and their being so coachable,” Ronning said. “When the girls run into hard times on the courts and struggle for one reason or another, they are willing to listen and try to the best of their abilities to play in a new strategy or game plan. I do believe the girls feel they can go out and win any match any night when they are willing to play several different games styles if needed.”

MATCH RESULTS

Alexandria 7, Rocori 0

SINGLES – No. 1 – Lukes (A) def. Erin Porwoll, 6-3, 6-2; No. 2 – Bergstrand (A) def. Melissa Nierenhausen – 6-1, 6-1; No. 3 – Snell (A) def. Tracy Molitor, 6-4, 6-2; No. 4 – Schueler (A) def. Jenna Chiantera, 6-2, 6-7 (2), 6-1

DOUBLES – No. 1 – Larson/Hedstrom (A) def. Vanessa Voigt/Monica Benda, 7-5, 6-2; No. 2 – Sjostrand/Wheeler (A) def. Sam Fussy/Jenna Kalthoff, 6-3, 6-0; No. 3 – Wilkins/Sater (A) def. Callie Swanberg/Brynn Sauer, 6-0, 6-0

Tags: alexandria sports, sports, cardinals, girls, tennis