Bella Kilps
HOPE — Two girls tennis teams that hadn’t played a lot of matches this season because of rainouts had a chance to take the court after another rain delay on Friday afternoon at Hauser.
The host Jets used three quick victories to claim a 4-1 win against Edinburgh in the Mid-Hoosier Conference opener for both teams.
“It’s definitely exciting and good,” Hauser senior Bella Kilps said. “It’s been a bummer recently just with the weather raining us out. But it was nice to get back, and I know going into the day, Edinburgh was definitely a team that we all wanted to beat being Mid-Hoosier Conference, and a goal is definitely to win conference if we can.”
Kilps beat the Lancers’ Jessica Walsh 6-1, 6-4 at No. 1 singles. The Jets’ Addy Barriger and Mattie Foster topped Lily Turner and Mia Dodson at No. 1 doubles, and Kaycee Ridgley and Abby Manley blanked Gracie Lawson and Bella Turner at No. 2 doubles, both by 6-0, 6-0 scores.
“I think a lot of us are still trying to get back into things with missing so many practices, but everyone has done good so far,” Kilps said. “For not having practice recently, everyone might be a little rusty or just not in their best mode. There’s always room for improvement. But for the recent circumstances, I’d say we’re doing good.”
Lydia Jordan gave Hauser (1-2, 1-0) a 4-0 lead with a 6-2, 4-6, (10-4) win against Izzy Richardson at No. 2 singles.
“This wind was a problem on both sides, but we were so happy to play because we’ve been delayed a lot,” Hauser coach Molly Crabtree said. “I think it’s good for the girls to have confidence and getting wins and knowing they can do it. At the beginning of the season, we play some tough teams, so it’s good to get a first win and a first conference win, too. We haven’t had a ton of practices, so there’s things we have to work on, but I’m pretty happy that we were able to deal with the wind today.”
Edinburgh (0-2, 0-1) salvaged a point when Zoey Sida claimed a 6-3, 6-4 win against Kayden Miller at No. 3 singles.
“She played for about 2 1/2 hours, and she put in 110 percent effort,” Edinburgh coach Rachel O’Brien said.
The Lancers were playing for the first time since their season opener two weeks earlier.
“We haven’t been able to have many outdoor practices,” O’Brien said. “There are some things we need to work on. We need to work on playing at the net a little bit. The wind I know doesn’t help.”
