The REPORTER
The Guerin Catholic girls tennis season finally began its season Tuesday, and it was worth the wait.
The Golden Eagles traveled to Carmel’s Todd Witsken Tennis Center to play the No. 1-ranked and three-time defending state champion Greyhounds. Guerin Catholic beat Carmel 3-2, marking the first time a GC tennis program has ever defeated a Greyhounds program.
The Golden Eagles got their wins at No. 1 doubles, with sophomore sisters Katie Kolb and Anna Kolb winning 6-4, 6-3 over Grace Kim and Brylie Price. Meanwhile, Carmel picked up two straight-set victories, with No. 1 singles Manogna Pagadala winning over Katie Geon 6-1, 6-0 and the No. 2 doubles team of Addison Joyce and Gabby Hall beating Abby Quigley and Ella Hood 6-3, 6-4.
But Guerin Catholic won three-set matches at the other two positions to clinch the dual victory. No. 2 singles CeCe Phillips defeated Maddie Littell 6-2, 6-4, 6-2, while No. 3 singles Grace Docktor came back to beat Vesha Singh 3-6, 6-4, 6-2.
“I really think it’s a testament to how hard we’ve worked to build this program for the past seven years,” said GC coach Becky Ragsdale. She credited her players with doing “a good job of staying in the moment.”
The Golden Eagles followed that up with a 5-0 Wednesday win over University. Geon won at No. 1 singles over Laurel Buttrick; Geon took the first set 6-4 and Buttrick won the second set 6-4 before Geon won a super tiebreak to get the victory.
Phillips defeated Duygu Arseven 6-2, 6-4 at No. 2 singles, while No. 3 Docktor beat Anisha Patel 6-3, 6-0. In doubles, No. 1 Katie Kolb and Anna Kolb were 6-1, 6-0 winners over Clare Kilgore and Kara Wang, while Quigley and Hood won the No. 2 match over Sruti Alturi and Lauren Quinto, 6-4, 6-2.