BEA tennis player Carol Schrader comes to the net to hit a return while her partner, Lauren Survis, watches the action from the baseline during a match earlier this year.

St. Peter 6, BEA 1

The Bucs girls tennis team faced some tough Saints players at a meet held on Tuesday, Sept. 20. At the end of the evening, St. Peter emerged with a 6-1 win over BEA.

Buc Addison Armstrong showed tenacity in a No. 1 singles match against Saint Annika Southworth, bringing home BEA’s sole win of the evening.

Armstrong played a strong first set, winning 6-1, but went down 6-3 in the second set. A lengthy third set ended in a 12-10 victory for Armstrong, however.

Head coach Spencer Monson was very impressed with her playing.

“Addison Armstrong won against a girl that was previously unbeaten in conference play,” he said. “She swung her racquet with more confidence tonight than I have seen in a while.” 

At No. 2 singles, BEA’s Olivia Dutton suffered a narrow defeat to St. Peter’s Rhyan Holmgren. Dutton won her first set 6-4, but her opponent fought back to take the second and third sets 6-4 and 10-6.

Buc Grace Hanson was defeated at No. 3 singles by Saint Maddie Kamm, 6-1, 7-6 (7-5). Carol Schrader was also defeated by Saint Zetta Haugen at No. 4 singles, 6-1, 6-3.

St. Peter showed its depth at doubles, booking a decisive win at each doubles match.

BEA’s Lauren Survis and Ashlyn Klinkner were up against St. Peter’s Amelia Hildebrandt and Macy Weller at No. 1 doubles. The Saints took the match in straight sets, 6-2, 6-0.

At No. 2 doubles, it was Bucs Erika Gaydon and McKinley Hanson against Saints Kali Erickson and Nora Whipps. Erickson and Whipps won the match 6-0, 6-2.

No. 3 doubles brought a final Saints win when Raina Roemhildt and Kylie Southworth defeated BEA’s Erin Prescher and Addison Prescher 6-2, 6-1.

Despite the loss, Monson was proud of the Bucs for playing a strong game against the Saints.

“We competed very well tonight against a very good team,” he said.

St. James Area 5, BEA 2

Monson has observed that the St. James Area Saints are the favorite team to win the section.

Though the Saints did pull out a 5-2 win over BEA at a match held on Monday, Sept. 19, the Bucs did not go down without a fight.

“We played them well,” Monson said. “It ended up 2-5, but could have easily been 5-2.”

At the start of the match, it was Buc Armstrong against Saint Eva Romsdahl in a tight match at No. 1 singles.

The first set went to Romsdahl 7-5, while Armstrong took the second set 6-3. The match went to St. James area after a 10-4 tiebreaker in the third set.

Dutton snagged a win for BEA at No. 2 singles, meanwhile, against St. James Area’s Keyana Haler. A close first set went to Dutton after a 7-1 tiebreaker. Then, Dutton bounced back for a solid second set win, 6-2.

“Liv Dutton continues to have a great season,” Monson said following her impressive performance on Sept. 19. “She showed a lot of mental toughness in her match.”

Grace Hanson brought another victory for the Bucs at No. 3 singles, beating Saint Maya Kuseth in a three-set battle, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4.

St. James Area pulled another win at No. 4 singles, however, when Saint Lily Ciske beat Buc Schrader in straight sets, 7-5, 6-1.

The Saints came marching in on the doubles court to win all three doubles matches against the Bucs.

At No. 1 doubles, it was Bucs Survis and Klinkner against Saints Allison Bluedorn and Alexis Brekken. The match was a clean victory for St. James Area, 6-0, 6-0.

The numbers were messier at No. 2 doubles, with BEA’s Gaydon and McKinley Hanson putting up a real fight against Saints Mykela Hanson and Daney Tradepo.

St. James Area took the first set 6-2, but a narrow second set had to be settled by a tiebreaker, which the Saints eventually won, 7-5.

No. 3 doubles brought a final win for St. James Area. Saints Mika Wessles and Mariah Mireles defeated Bucs Addison Prescher and Erin Prescher in straight sets, 6-2, 6-2.

“We feel really good about our improvement on the season with how we played tonight,” Monson concluded after the match.

Mankato West 4, BEA 3

The Mankato West Scarlets invited the BEA Bucs and Fairmont Cardinals to a triangular meet on Sept. 17.

The Scarlets triumphed on their home court, beating the Cardinals 6-1 and securing a second win over the Bucs, 4-3.

“We competed well against a good Mankato West team,” Monson commented.

The Bucs booked two wins at singles. Armstrong came out on top at No. 1 singles after a three-set battle against Scarlet Payton Douglas.

Douglas took the first set 6-4, but Armstrong turned the match around in the second set when she snagged a 6-4 win over Douglas. The third set brought BEA a narrow victory, 10-8.

Dutton also performed well in a difficult match against Mankato West’s McKenna Schreiber at No. 2 singles.

“Liv Dutton was pushed at (No. 2 singles) more than she has been all year, but showed a lot of toughness by pulling her match out after getting down early,” Monson said.

Dutton won the match in two very close sets, 6-4, 6-4.

Monson also praised Grace Hanson’s playing at No. 3 singles.

“Grace Hanson played her best match of the season and beat a very strong player,” Monson said.

In a rollercoaster of a match, Hanson lost the first set to Scarlet Riley Lowe, 6-4. However, Hanson quickly regained her ground with a 6-1 win in the second set and a decisive 10-0 victory in the third set.

It was Mankato West’s turn for a victory at No. 4 singles. Addison Prescher suffered a 6-1, 6-1 defeat to Scarlet Emily Kodet.

Mankato West brought strong players to the doubles courts, meanwhile.

At No. 1 doubles, it was Bucs Survis and Schrader against Scarlets Ella Betters and Renn Corley. BEA was defeated by Mankato West in straight sets, 6-1, 6-0.

No. 2 doubles brought another victory for the Scarlets. Mankato West’s Julia Ulman and Delaney Giesen beat BEA’s Klinkner and Gaydon, 6-1, 6-1.

Scarlets Marianna Gioffre and Violette LeBoutillier also proved tough opponents for Bucs McKinley Hanson and Erin Prescher. The Bucs were defeated, 6-0, 6-0, by the Scarlets.

Fairmont 4, BEA 3

“Another tight one with Fairmont,” Monson commented following the Bucs’ face-off with the Cardinals at the Sept. 17 Mankato West triangular meet.

Though BEA and Fairmont split the singles bracket, the Cardinals pulled an extra win at doubles to scrape a narrow victory against the Bucs.

Armstrong started off strong at No. 1 singles against Cardinal Abi Peyman, defeating Peyman 6-0, 6-2.

Dutton also played well at No. 2 singles when she faced Fairmont’s Brynn Gustafson. Dutton snagged an easy victory in straight sets, 6-0, 6-1.

Buc Grace Hanson played a tight first set against Cardinal Anika Haugen at No. 3 singles, though she eventually lost the set to Haugen in a 7-4 tiebreaker. Haugen then took the second set for Fairmont, 6-1.

At No. 4 singles, it was BEA’s Gaydon up against Fairmont’s Elly Stegge. The win went to Stegge in two sets, 6-2, 6-4.

After equal showings at singles, BEA and Fairmont jockeyed for the win at doubles.

At No. 1 doubles, Survis and Schrader played two sets against Fairmont’s Johanna Petschke and Paige Linse. The Cardinals snagged the win 6-1, 6-0.

Bucs Klinkner and McKinley Hanson fought back for a win against Fairmont’s Lilly Laven and Solveig Senf at No. 2 doubles. The Bucs won in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1.

A tight No. 3 doubles match between BEA’s Erin Prescher and Addison Prescher and Fairmont’s Emelia Klanderud and Madi Peyman eventually went to the Cardinals.

The first set was decided by a 7-5 tiebreaker which went to Fairmont, but BEA took the second set, 7-5. A grueling third set eventually went to the Cardinals, 12-10.

“The Prescher sisters played really well,” Monson said. “They are improving a lot from all of their close matches.”

Waseca 4, BEA 3

The Waseca Bluejays edged out the BEA Bucs in another close match on Sept. 8.

Though the Bucs had another strong showing on the singles courts, the Bluejays swept doubles to secure a 4-3 victory.

BEA’s Armstrong and Dutton continued to prove themselves strong competitors in the top singles slots.

Armstrong faced Waseca’s Sarah Robbins at No. 1 singles, claiming the match for BEA in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2. Dutton also brought the Bucs a quick victory in straight sets at No. 2 singles, defeating Sarah Haley 6-0, 6-1.

Buc Grace Hanson battled hard for the win at No. 3 singles. Bluejay Takya Schoenrock took the first set 6-3, but Hanson took the second set, 6-3. Her 6-3 victory in the third set settled the match in the Bucs’ favor.

BEA’s Addison Prescher also put up a fight at No. 4 singles in a match which head coach Spencer Monson noted, “went right down to the wire.” Ultimately, Prescher lost to Waseca’s Lauren Drexler in two very close sets, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-5).

The Bluejays flew into action on the doubles court to claim all three matches for Waseca.

At No. 1 doubles, BEA’s Schrader and Survis faced Waseca’s Cece Huttemier and Miranda Breck. The Bucs were defeated 6-1, 7-5.

It was another victory for the Bluejays at No. 2 doubles when Waseca’s Addie Pfeifer and Mia Karewischer defeated Bucs Klinkner and Gaydon in straight sets, 6-3, 6-3.

A similar story played out at No. 3 doubles when BEA’s McKinley Hanson and Erin Prescher were pitted against Waseca’s Paige DuFowlt and Maddy Benson. The Bluejays snagged a final win over the Bucs, 6-3, 6-2.

The Bucs traveled to face New Ulm on Thursday, Sept. 22.

Next week, they are scheduled to play United South Central on Monday, Sept. 26 and participate in the Big South Championship on Tuesday, Sept. 27.

Read the results in next week’s issue of the Faribault County Register.