Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
LARWILL -ÊOne of the Wawasee boys tennis team's goals is to go into the fourth match of the season against Concord with a 3-0 record. The Warriors, now 2-0, got closer to that goal Tuesday night when they defeated Whitko 5-0.
The Warriors started the evening with a win at the No. 1 singles position when Kyle Hollon defeated Whitko's Nathan Haywood 6-0, 6-1 to put the Warriors up 1-0.
After Mickey Ashpole defeated Wildcat Jared Jagger at No. 2 singles, Kyle Farrell and Carter Ploszek teamed up to defeat Whitko's Greg Neher and Shawn Dorgan to put Wawasee up 3-0.
"Jared Jagger got things going in the second set but couldn't seem to pull it out," said Whitko coach Larry Schuh. "Our No. 1 doubles got a good start but lost their concentration."
Logan Pilcher and Scott Beasley then downed Phil Reed and Blake Hike 6-1, 6-2 to put the Warriors up 4-0.
In the longest match of the day, Evan Gerard played Whitko's Cory Mettler at No. 3 singles. After going up 4-0 in the first set, Gerard defeated Mettler 6-3, 6-1 to give Wawasee a clean sweep of the Wildcats.
"It was nice for Evan Gerard to get a win at No. 3 singles," said Wawasee coach Phil Mishler. "He is playing well. He gets better every game, and it's good to see that."
"Cory Mettler played some good points and stayed in the game," said Schuh.
"The team played well, winning 5-0. You can't take that away from them," said Mishler. "It was evident today that our level of concentration has improved. We have been focusing on the mental part of the game. We got a lot better today."
Whitko is focusing on making improvements as a team as well.
"We have some good talent that is just developing," said Schuh. "Our program is growing. We have some sophomores with a lot of potential. We are working on improving every day."
After winning Tuesday, the Warriors will focus on achieving their goals.
"We had three goals at the beginning of the season," said Mishler. "One was leadership, and the seniors have done an excellent job with that. Our second goal was to improve our mental toughness, and that is coming along.
"The third was to improve because we are a younger team. We are getting better with each passing day."
Wawasee travels to Central Noble to face the Cougars today. The Warriors host Concord Thursday.
"We know the conference will be the real test for us," said Mishler. "If we can go into Concord 3-0, I think it will help our confidence. We'll give it our best shot."
Wawasee def. Whitko 5-0
Singles
No. 1 - Kyle Hollon (Wa) def. Nathan Haywood 6-0, 6-1
No. 2 - Mickey Ashpole (Wa) def. Jared Jagger 6-1, 6-3
No. 3 - Evan Gerard (Wa) def. Cory Mettler 6-3, 6-1
Doubles
No. 1 - Kyle Farrell/Carter Ploszek (Wa) def. Greg Neher/Shawn Dorgan 6-2, 6-2
No. 2 - Scott Beasley/Logan Pilcher (Wa) def. Phil Reed/Blake Hike 6-1, 6-2
Wawasee record - 2-0
Whitko record -Ê0-2
JV
Wawasee def. Whitko 3-0
Wawasee record - 2-0
Whitko record -Ê0-2
