Hodag tennis gets back on track, wins four straight

After a string of difficult matches early last week, the Rhinelander High School girls’ tennis team got just what the doctor ordered last Friday and again on Tuesday. 

The Hodags, bouncing back from a 5-2 loss to Wausau Newman last Thursday, won all three of their matches in a home quadrangular on Friday and then improved to 2-1 in Great Northern Conference play with a 7-0 sweep at Phillips on Tuesday. 

Rhinelander’s Annie Vander Galien hits a return during a girls’ tennis match against Merrill at the RHS tennis courts Friday, Aug. 29.
(Photo by Bob Mainhardt for the River News)

Coach Matt Nichols had a long conversation with his team about its path moving forward following last Thursday’s 5-2 loss to Wausau Newman and said he could already see a response from his players in the three matches it played the next day. 

Rhinelander started the invite with a 5-2 win over Merrill, followed with a 6-1 win over Ironwood, Mich. and ended the day with a 7-0 sweep over Ashland. 

“The teams aren't necessarily as strong as some of the teams we saw earlier this week, but we can still go in and develop our mental game and strategy,” Nichols said. “And especially when we're up, it's a lot easier to implement new strategies. So these matches were really important in developing a focus mindset, whether we're up or down, because sometimes it's just as hard to focus if we're doing really well and we don't feel like we have to focus. So practicing that mental side of tennis and then also being able to practice some strategies with a little more give, if they're not working perfectly. Implementing new strategies was another big takeaway from today.”

Nichols used Friday’s matches to mix the lineup and give some varsity starters a bit of a respite following a long week of tennis. No player played more than two matches on the day. 

Those who went 2-0 in the invite included Annie Vander Galien, Taylor McKinney, Sam Aschenbrenner, Lucy Evers and Becca Brost in singles, and the doubles tandems of Teagan Turcotte/Maddie Legrey, Eva Heck/Willow VanDenHeuvel and Willow Mutter/Addy Currie.

Rhinelander lost only one match in singles during the invite. That came at with Vander Galien sitting out and sophomore Jordan Manske moving up to the No. 1 flight. Manske was edged by Ironwood’s Jacinta Lauzon in a match tiebreaker 0-6, 6-4, 10-7. 

“I think a big thing is looking at our singles — and we kind of knew it, but I think this solidified it — is through six singles on the team, we have some very competitive players. Sam's looking at that six spot and she was still getting wins pretty decisively,” Nichols noted.

Three players made their varsity debuts on Friday — sophomore Alexia Corey-Luse and juniors Mya Gillen and Ellerie Barlog. 

Luse split her two matches in doubles with playing partner Addy Strobel, falling to Merrill before rebounding with a straight-set win over Ironwood. Gillen and Barlog dropped a match at No. 3 doubles against Merrill.

“It was nice to see some of the sophomores and juniors, especially, that haven't played consistent varsity spots, whether they won or lost, still compete at some varsity flights and get some good game experience,” Nichols said.

Rhinelander carried that momentum forward into a match Tuesday at Phillips, where they dropped four games total in a 7-0 victory. 

Vander Galien, Manske, McKinney and Evers swept the singles flights for Rhinelander. Vanden Galien won 6-0, 6-1 over Elsie Bending at the No. 1 flight. The other three were 6-0, 6-0 winners. 

Legrey and Turcotte scored a 6-1, 6-1 winner at No. 1 doubles, Heck and Willow VanDenHeuvel were 6-0, 6-0 winners at No. 2 and Mutter and Currie took a 6-0, 6-1 win at No. 3 doubles.

The Hodags were back in action Thursday as the took on early-season GNC leader Medford at the RHS tennis courts in a match that concluded after press time for today’s edition. Rhinelander travels to Stevens Point to take on Pacelli this coming Tuesday. 

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].