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KINGSFORD -- The Escanaba girls tennis team edged out a tournament win at the Kingsford Invite Friday with a point total of 33.
"We had a great day at the Kingsford Invite on Friday," Esky coach Chris Ogren said. "We were able to come away with the tournament win thanks to winning four of eight flights. We made it to four finals, and we were able to win them all."
The Eskymos picked up wins at No. 1 singles, No. 1 doubles, No. 2 doubles and No. 3 doubles.
"Sophia Derkos at No. 1 singles, Delaney McIntyre and Natalie Williams at No. 1 doubles, Leslie Purcell and Sam Manninen at No. 2 doubles and Isy Braun and Sophie Wagner at No. 3 doubles were all able to win their respective flights," Ogren said. "Sophia Derkos looked impressive as she was able to beat a very tough sophomore from Westwood, Lexi Olson, in the No. 1 singles final. The second set was tied at 3-3 before Sophia regained control and closed the set out 6-3. This may have been Sophia's toughest match this year, and it came as her second match of the day. It was good to see her rise to the occasion and secure the win.
"Delaney McIntyre and Natalie Williams had to play the two best teams that they've had to play all year, and they were able to win against both of them. These two have done a great job of staying calm and focused even when they have had some rough stretches. Even after losing their first set of the day, they were able to bounce right back and win every other set they played.
"Leslie Purcell and Sam Manninen showed some nice ability to adjust on their way to winning at No. 2 singles. They had some hiccups early, but they quickly cleaned up some mistakes and ended up playing their best tennis of the year so far.
"At No. 3 doubles, Isy Braun and Sophie Wagner had to play three matches to win their championship, but they were up to the challenge. After losing to West Iron County's No. 3 doubles team on Wednesday, Isy and Sophie were able to turn the tables and beat that same team during the tournament. Being able to beat opponents during the biggest matches will be something our whole team will need to be able to do if we want to win other tournaments in the future."
Despite losses in the other flights, Ogren wasn't disappointed with the team's performance.
"Our No. 2, 3 and 4 singles players -- Sonya Maki, Molly VanDamme and Maggie Martin -- all finished fourth," he said. "They all won their first matches before losing in their semifinals. We didn't have any bad losses among these three, and they all showed resilience while having to play three long matches on a very warm day. The toughest part about winning singles matches in tournaments is having the endurance to play three complete matches without wearing down. Despite the losses, a day like this will help us in our preparation for the GNC (Great Northern Conference) tournament and U.P. Finals.
"Finally, our No. 4 doubles team of Carly Bowden and Molly Smale finished third. They lost in their semifinal in a close match with West Iron County before bouncing back to beat Menominee in the third place match. Playing two close matches will certainly give us the experience we're looking for as we move closer to the end of our season."
Escanaba visits Negaunee Thursday.