Saxons Carry Winning Momentum
GLS girls tennis
It’s getting tough to remember the last time the Ferris girls tennis team lost a Greater Spokane League match.
For the record, the year was 1992, and the Saxons had just wound up their spring season without a win. Since then, Coach Rob Cummins’ teams have won 32 straight.
The formula, Cummins says, is simple.
“It’s just what we do from week to week to get ready,” he said. “Conditioning. Drills. Then we just go out and play tennis. The No. 1 goal is to have fun.”
Gonzaga Prep coach Donna Lenseigne says flexibility is the buzzword on the Bullpups’ tennis courts.
G-Prep, last year’s GSL runner-up, lost its No. 1 singles player and doubles team to graduation. But with so much depth, especially in the middle of the rotations, Lenseigne says the Bullpups have a team for every occasion this season.
“Our players have more possibilities to go from singles to doubles, and our team will be stronger because of it,” Lenseigne says.
Even though Lewis and Clark returns only two letter winners from its 4-4 team of a year ago, there’s an upside to the Tiger’s inexperience.
Eleven of 32 players this year are freshman, and a good portion of the rest are underclassmen.
“We have a younger team than we’ve had in previous years, but we also have a lot of potential for the future,” said coach Bob Adams.
Ferris senior Darcy Ruemping, perhaps the best player in the city, most likely will occupy the Saxons’ No. 1 position. Cummins also expects sophomore Megan McKitterick, who played at No. 4 last year, to move up in the rotation.
Five other players, including seniors Bri Lehman, Salina Winston and Jessica White and junior Nicole SantschiApadoca all have either singles or doubles experience with Ferris. Senior Katie Watts returns to the team after a stint in Washington, D.C., as a congressional page.
At Gonzaga Prep, junior Wendy Lynn, sophomore Molly Maixner, and frosh Lisa VanGemert, all South Hill residents, are expected to challenge for top singles positions. But Lenseigne says the talent doesn’t stop there.
“I’m just surprised how strong everyone is,” she said. “I really feel we’re a step ahead of last year.”
Four other South Side seniors return to round out the Bullpup lineup, including Jennie Beyer, Erin Janosky, and two players who took a break last year, Krista Kubiak and Kristin Kacey.
LC coach Adams said senior Anna Adolphson, the team’s No. 1 singles player from a year ago, is on track to be “one of the strongest singles players in the GSL.”
Senior Kim Kallestad also has a shot at the Tigers’ singles rotation. Both Adolphson and Kallestad are the only two letter winners from a year ago, but senior Jenny Killingsworth played well at the top of the junior varsity ladder last year and is expected to fill a varsity spot.
Four juniors - Lisa Kallestad, Heather Kline, Elizabeth Johnson and Kelly Cochran - also bring a measure of experience to LC’s lineup.