By RICHIE HALL
sports@readthereporter.com
CARMEL – The Carmel girls tennis team has had a remarkable amount of success over the decades, so it should come as no surprise that the Greyhounds are always ready for a challenge.
Carmel got a big challenge on Tuesday to open its 2023 season. The ‘Hounds hosted Sacred Heart Academy from Louisville at the Todd Witsken Tennis Center. It was a battle of state champions: Carmel is the two-time defender in Indiana, while Sacred Heart has won four in a row in Kentucky.
Sacred Heart got the win on Tuesday, beating the Greyhounds 4-1. It wasn’t the easiest way to open a season, as Carmel was coming back from Spring Break. But first-year Greyhounds coach Dan Brunette gave the Valkyries credit.
“I think they are a more seasoned team at this point, and are very comfortable with what they’re doing,” said Brunette. “Their players know their strategy quite well.”
Carmel’s lone victory came at No. 2 doubles. The team of senior Ali Griffin and freshman Alex Widjaja picked up a hard-fought 7-5, 6-4 victory. The Greyhounds’ No. 3 singles player, sophomore Marina Duncan, pushed her opponent to three sets before falling in a third-set super tiebreak, 7-5, 1-6, 10-5.
Sacred Heart won the other matches in straight sets. In singles, No. 1, junior Nora Perkins lost to Ellie Hammond 6-1, 6-0. It was a tough start, but Brunette said it was a “good opportunity for her to go out and start to feel what it’s like to play the best player on the other team.” Perkins played primarily No. 2 singles last year and was a integral part of Carmel’s run.
At No. 2 singles, sophomore Rumi Kim fell to Avery Voss 6-2, 6-0. Perkins is a junior and Kim is a sophomore. The No. 1 doubles team of seniors Elyse Nelson and Alexa Lewis lost 6-2, 6-4.
Nelson, Lewis and Griffin are all back for Carmel from last season. Several junior varsity players are in the mix, such as freshman Olive Widjaja. Brunette said the team is “trying to figure out the pieces of the puzzle. Nothing’s set in stone yet.”
“We’ll just take it one match at a time until we feel like we’re in our rhythm and each person, each player has found their spot where they’re going to be potentially most successful,” said Brunette.
Carmel is ranked No. 1 in the first Indiana High School Tennis Coaches Association’s poll, and will be playing many other teams that are ranked this year. The Greyhounds play at Delta on Thursday and host Plainfield on Saturday. Other top teams on the horizon are South Bend St. Joseph, Zionsville, Homestead, North Central and Cathedral.