Home Local Sports Richmond girls’ tennis comes up short in doubleheader

Richmond girls’ tennis comes up short in doubleheader

ROSports File Photo: Head coach Jessica Covington talks strategy with senior Addison Massey during a match earlier this season. (Kyle Pillar, sports editor)

SOUTHERN PINES — The Richmond Senior High School girls’ tennis team dropped both ends of a doubleheader at Pinecrest on Tuesday.

Playing both regular season matches on the road as a result of a make-up from earlier in the season, the Lady Raiders suffered match defeats of 0-9 and 0-6.

A perennial powerhouse in the Sandhills Athletic Conference, the Lady Patriots collected nine shutout wins across the two matches.

“Any time we play Pinecrest, we know it’s going to be a challenge,” head coach Jessica Covington said. “Even though we lost, I was proud of the girls’ efforts. When they were down, they didn’t give up and really tried to compete. The scores don’t indicate how well they played.

“This is definitely a learning experience for the team,” she added. “Playing against good opponents makes you a better player, and I think the girls will take what they learned today and use it moving forward.”

Match No. 1

In the first match, only senior No. 1 Hana Oki and senior No. 6 Ashlyn Bouldin managed to win a point in singles play. Oki lost 2-8 against Brooke LaFrenz and Bouldin fell 1-8 to Gabby Hooper.

Neely Turner, Addison Massey, Hanna Smith and Maren Carter were all shutout against their respective opponents.

The No. 2 doubles pairing of Massey and Smith, along with the No. 3 duo of Carter and Savannah Jordan, both made competitive efforts at a win.

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Massey and Smith came up short 5-8 against Emma Medina and Sophia Pandich, while Carter and Jordan lost 3-8 to Eliza Hage and Cina Huston. Oki and Turner lost 0-8 in the No. 1 match.

Match No. 2

The second match saw just six total matches played, all singles. No. 3 Massey and No. 6 Bouldin managed to win points against their respective opponents.

Bouldin’s three points were a team-high in a 3-8 loss to Ella Boals, and Massey notched a point in a 1-8 defeat to Estelle Kilpatrick.

This time, Oki, Turner, Smith and Carter suffered shutout losses. No doubles matches were played on the back end of the doubleheader.

Richmond (3-5, 3-5 SAC) travels to Hoke County High School on Thursday, looking for the season sweep of the Lady Bucks. Singles matches will begin at 4 p.m.