The Greenwood Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs tennis teams are now three matches deep into their 2019 schedule, having already lost one match to the August heat, which they hope to makeup later.
Head Coach Ken Hamilton, beginning his 25th year at the helm, has a good mixture of experience and youth, and expects his teams to be competitive both on the conference and state levels this season.
Last Thursday, August 22nd, the two GHS squads traveled to Arkansas Tech University in Russellville to face Harrison. The neutral site helps minimize travel issues for both teams.
In girls singles play, Greenwood’s Olivia Gaston and Abigail Woodring, both seniors, were each victorious, not losing a single game, winning 8-0 and 8-0. Both girls remain undefeated for the season.
In girls doubles action, Greenwood seniors Breanna Acosta and Madie Pelt lost their match, 3-8. The GHS duo of junior Sarah Beshears and freshman McKenzie Cannon lost 4-8.
In girls junior varsity play, doubles partners Kennedy Holland (sophomore) and Lucia Wilcox (freshman) lost 4-8. In JV singles play, sophomore Eden Adams lost 4-8.
In boys varsity singles, Greenwood junior Zac Beshears won 8-6, while freshman Brenden Hoskyn lost 5-8.
In boys doubles play, junior Jonathan Mitchell and senior Eli Butler combined for an 8-4 victory, while junior Micah Belue and freshman Conner Jones lost 4-8.
Ninth-grader Grayson Vaughn lost 2-6 in boys junior varsity singles play.
Greenwood was slated to play this past Tuesday at Russellville High School, weather permitting, against both Vilonia and Greenbriar. They will travel to Alma on Thursday for a match.
Earlier matches
Greenwood’s first scheduled match on August 13th at Rogers Heritage was rained out, but rescheduled two days later on the 15th. In girls singles, Olivia Gaston and Abigail Woodring won 8-0 and 8-2, respectively.
In varsity boys singles, Zac Beshears won a long match, 8-6, while Jonathan Mitchell lost 6-8 in another long match delayed almost an hour by lightning. Eli Butler and Micah Belue also lost long singles matches.
The Siloam Springs match on August 19th was postponed due to extreme conditions, with the heat index soaring well above 100 degrees. The match will be rescheduled if possible, said Coach Hamilton.
The following day the 3:30 p.m. match at Van Buren was pushed back to 7 p.m. to avoid the heat, but the visitors could not escape their inexperience on the court with six freshmen and four sophomores on the roster.
Olivia Gaston and Abigail Woodring won the only two girls matches for Greenwood, 8-0 and 8-0. All other GHS girls lost, as did the all the varsity boys.
But win, lose, or draw, Coach Hamilton expects his younger players to gain experience and get better as the season progresses.
“We are trying to give all the freshmen as much playing time as we can. They should continue to improve as we enter the conference season,” he said.