April 13, 2022 at 10:54 a.m.
Hodag tennis cruises past Pacelli
Hodag tennis cruises past Pacelli
The Hodags dropped a total of three games in five contested matches as they downed Pacelli 7-0 in the Hodag Dome. It was the second match of the season for Rhinelander (2-0, 2-0 Great Northern), and coach Matt Nichols said he could see improvement from his team compared to its season-opening win over Lakeland April 7.
"I thought that, overall, we stepped up," he said. "It looked like we had a little more energy on the court and we played a better game. Obviously, we weren't faced with much opposition in places, but we played up to a higher level than what I saw late last week."
The Hodags made some tweaks toward the bottom of their lineup, bumping sophomore John Currie up to No. 3 singles while moving junior Leo Losch to No. 2 doubles with fellow junior Charlie Heck.
Currie looked sharp as he rolled to a 6-0, 6-0 win over Pacelli's Dominic Kroenig.
"John, he performed really well against Lakeland and we thought his game and his strokes would just lend itself well for No. 3 singles," Nichols noted.
The move gives Rhinelander a Heck-Losch pairing in doubles once again. Joseph Heck and Jake Losch, the older brothers of Charlie Heck and Leo Losch, went undefeated in the No. 3 flight last year in their senior campaign and won a sectional title. The younger brothers started their partnership off on the right foot Monday with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Marcus Lansing and Keagen Austreng.
"We were really happy with the idea of having Leo and Charlie together," Nichols said. "They play really well together. They're friends outside (of tennis) and chemistry's important. Both are juniors, so they have this experience together."
The third piece to the lineup swap put sophomore Dawson Pontell into the No. 4 singles position, where he won unopposed on Monday. Pacelli forfeited that flight along with No. 3 doubles, where Eli Lundt and Gavin Denis won by default.
"Dawson, I think his game, he was good at doubles. He might end up there, but he also has a good singles game, so we want to see him there," Nichols noted.
Rhinelander cruised in the top flights on Monday. Luke Ring downed Bennett Eckendorf 6-0, 6-1 at No. 1 singles while Joey Belanger beat Ben Westrick 6-0, 6-0 at No. 2 singles. Elijah Evers and Layne Roeser were 6-1, 6-0 winners over Mateo Koch and Eli Robison at No. 1 doubles.
"Elijah really impressed me. His game from last year to this year has grown a lot, just in consistency and awareness on the court, just making smart shots," Nichols said.
Rhinelander was set to travel to Medford Thursday, however a decision was made late Tuesday to postpone the match due to poor forecasted weather conditions. The match-time temperature was forecasted to be in the mid 30s with wind gusts in excess of 40 MPH in what would have been the Hodags' first outdoor match of the season.
"I think the elements are going to be the biggest factor going in, whether first off, we have it or not, but Medford's a strong team," Nichols said of last year's conference runners-up, prior to the match getting postponed. "They pushed us last year and I haven't looked to see exactly who's all returning and who they lost, but I'm sure they're going to be the most competitive team we've played so far."
As of press time, a make-up date for the Rhinelander-Medford match had not been announced. The Hodags will return to action Tuesday at Antigo.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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