Troy tennis shows marked improvement against tough competition
Apr. 25—The Troy Lady Trojans tennis team faced stiff competition on the road last week, testing their mettle against some of the toughest Class B/C programs in Western Montana. Despite a challenging slate of matches against Valley Christian, Loyola Sacred Heart, Superior, Granite, and Alberton, the squad showed marked improvement across the board — a fact that head coach Ed Sedler says is just as important as wins in the early spring.
On Tuesday, April 15, Troy traveled to Missoula for the Valley Christian Invite, taking on perennial tennis powerhouses Valley Christian and Loyola Sacred Heart. While the Lady Trojans did not emerge with a team win, Sedler was quick to point out how far the program has come in just a couple of seasons.
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"Last year we only won one match at this invite, and the year before that we were blown out in every contest," Sedler said. "This year, most of the matches were competitive, and I'm particularly pleased that many of our girls fought back after losing the first set — winning more games in the second or outright taking the set."
Against Valley Christian, Bella O'Day came close to pulling off a comeback at No. 4 singles, splitting sets with Olivia Hoffman 4-6, 6-4 before narrowly falling in a third-set tiebreak, 9-11. Troy also picked up a JV doubles win, with Salix Harris and Brookelyn Bowers taking down their No. 3 counterparts in straight sets, 7-5, 6-4.
Facing Loyola Sacred Heart later that day, O'Day once again shined, defeating Samantha Curry 6-2, 6-2 in Troy's lone win in that matchup. Both top singles players — Shelby Cole and Miley Babcock — battled through long matches but eventually fell after exhausting three-set efforts in the heat.
"Our top two singles players really fought hard in their first matches — about two-hour affairs — and with it being the first 70-degree day for us, they were just spent by the second matchup," Sedler said.
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The competition continued Friday, April 18, when Troy traveled to Superior to face Granite and Alberton in the Superior Invite.
In a packed day of play, Troy went 1-0 against Alberton, 0-2 against Granite, and split their matchups 3-3 against Superior — marking the program's strongest showing against the divisional rival in several seasons.
"Our number two doubles team has particularly improved," Sedler noted. "The continued success of the JV doubles team is exciting as well."
Troy's varsity wins against Superior came in both singles and doubles. Jolene Foutch fought off Camryn Church 6-2, 7-5 at No. 3 singles, while Bella O'Day won a forfeit at No. 4 singles. On the doubles side, the No. 2 pairing of Christina Hammer and Abby Kreutzer cruised to a 6-3, 6-1 victory, and Harris and Bowers added another thrilling win, coming from behind to defeat Superior's No. 3 team 4-6, 6-4, 10-6.
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The JV record further improved, with Troy's ad-hox doubles team of Sophia Simanovicki and Bella O'Day winning their match 2-6, 6-1, 10-8 — continuing a trend of depth and versatility for the Trojans.
"Bella is a singles player through and through, but Superior wanted to try out a new potential varsity doubles team in lieu of her singles' slot, so she changed gears and took the opportunity to practice her net play," Sedler said. "These girls just want to compete every chance they get."
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