Trending
NEGAUNEE -- Negaunee pulled off a 6-2 home victory over Kingsford on Thursday in the final dual meet of the high school girls tennis season for the Miners.
Negaunee, which finished with a dual-meet record of 14-1, was coming off a runner-up finish to Westwood at the Mid-Peninsula Conference meet a day earlier, where the Patriots prevailed in six of the eight championship matches against Miners' players.
"With this being our last dual meet before (the MHSAA U.P. Finals in Division 1), we knew we needed to come into it with focus," Negaunee head coach Megan Kerkela said in an email detailing the result. "We had a tough day at (the) M-PC's ... and I felt we did not play our best tennis as a whole.
"(Thursday) was a different story and we came out strong. We always talk about playing our best tennis at the end of the season and we took a step in the right direction to be in the position to play our best tennis at (the finals)."
Each of the Miners' victories came in two sets, while even the No. 1 doubles team of Paige O'Donnell and Olivia Richards that lost extended their match to a third set. Kingsford's Mira Johnson and Kylee Woodward won that one, 1-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3.
Kerkela was also encouraged in Negaunee's other loss by Stella Lenten to the Flivvers' Aubrie Moore, 6-4, 6-0.
"Stella knew coming into (Thursday that) Aubrie was going to be a tough opponent, but she hung with her and played some great tennis," the coach said.
And Kerkela had high praise for her No. 3 flights in both singles and doubles.
"Our (Nos.) 3's, Lucy Rogers at singles and Bree Helppi and Audrey Hahn at doubles, have become strong flights for us and have developed drastically as players since the beginning of the season," Kerkela said.
Other Miners winners were Addie Chapman at No. 2 singles, Katie Carlson at No. 4 singles, Maia Brunette and Aubrey Harper at No. 2 doubles, and Emme Niemi and Sydney Jarvi at No. 4 doubles.
The Division 1 U.P. Finals will be played at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the Negaunee courts, with the seven-team field also including Westwood and Marquette from the area. Division 2 goes Thursday, and while hosted by Ishpeming, will be played at the Westwood and Negaunee courts. That group of seven teams includes the Hematites, Gwinn and Munising.
Negaunee 6, Kingsford 2
Thursday at Negaunee
SINGLES -- No. 1, Aubrie Moore (K) def. Stella Lenten 6-4, 6-0; No. 2, Addie Chapman (N) def. Maddy Sleik 7-5, 6-4; No. 3, Lucy Rogers (N) def. Aubrey Bellmore 6-0, 6-2; No. 4, Katie Carlson (N) def. Chloe Lanning 6-3, 6-4
DOUBLES -- No. 1, Mira Johnson-Kylee Woodward (K) def. Paige O'Donnell-Olivia Richards 1-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3; No. 2, Maia Brunette-Aubrey Harper (N) def. Natalie Bjorne-Verity Martin 6-2, 6-3; No. 3, Bree Helppi-Audrey Hahn (N) def. Alice Hall-Myla Beauchamp 6-0, 6-1; No. 4, Emme Niemi-Sydney Jarvi (N) def. Claire Rutter-Alexa Hearn 6-2, 7-5
Story contents based on an email received from Negaunee tennis coach Megan Kerkela. Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee's email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.