MORGANTOWN — Morgantown and University met once again in tennis action Tuesday, this time including both the boys’ and girls’ teams. The girls’ teams played each other twice in order to make up lost matches from earlier in the season in order to ensure they have enough matches played before OVAC championships begin.
In the first match on the girls’ side, played indoors at Summit Tennis Academy, UHS handily won by a match score of 6-1, then followed it up with a 5-2 victory.
It was the first time the Hawks beat the Mohigans in a decade.
Freshman Lyla Byers is one of the top players in the state in the singles division. Although this is only her first season on the team, she is already making a huge impact in the girls’ division in West Virginia and is setting a leadership example for the rest of her teammates.
“I feel like our entire team is playing the best tennis of the season,” Byers said. “Personally, I am trying to play every point like it’s the most important point of the match. I’ve also been working on improving my first serve percentage.”
Byers is also one-half of the No. 1 doubles team for UHS, alongside Deah Gharib. The two seem to have a natural chemistry on the court and it won’t be surprising if they’re competing for a state title in doubles, as well.
“Every time we play, we are coming together more as a team,” Byers said of the progression she and her partner continue to make. “We are excited to see how we do against the best teams in the state.”
“I was incredibly proud of our girls’ team today. Tremendous effort and hustle,” UHS head coach Tom McClellan said of his girls’ efforts. “It’s great to finally get a win over Morgantown and get a big springboard into regionals.”
For Morgantown, the Mohigans won three matches across both team matches with wins from No. 4 singles Maddie Carver (8-6) in the first match, and then again in the second match (8-3). No. 2 doubles, made up of Grace Forman and Carver, won 8-5.
Singles
#1 Lyla Byers (8) / Amy Lu (0)
#2 Deah Gharib (8) / Sam Carver (6)
#3 Emma Rusiecki (8) / Grace Forman (2)
#4 Maddie Carver (MHS) (8) / Sydney Takacs (UHS) (6)
Doubles
#1 Byers/Gharib (8) / Carver/Lu (1)
#2 Rusiecki/Brooklyn Rutledge (9) / Forman/Carver (7)
#3 Daffner/Takacs (8) / Van Eeden/Lin (4)
The second girls match results are below:
Singles
#1 Lyla Byers (8) / Amy Lu (0)
#2 Deah Gharib (8) / Sam Carver (2)
#3 Emma Rusiecki (8) / Grace Forman (1)
#4 Maddie Carver (MHS) (8) / Sydney Takacs (UHS) (4)
Doubles
#1 Byers/Gharib (8) / Carver/Lu (2)
#2 Rusiecki/Brooklyn Rutledge (5) / Forman/Carver (8)
#3 Daffner/Takacs (8) / Van Eeden/Lin (4)
On the boys’ side, there was a repeat of the same match held Saturday night, with MHS sweeping all matches for a perfect 7-0 victory. Junior No. 1 singles player Max Phillips-Hartley won his match 8-0 over UHS freshman Andrew McClellan, coming after the two played a very competitive match Saturday with the result in favor of the MHS junior but by a closer score of 8-4.
Singles
#1 Max Phillips-Hartley ( 8 ) / Andrew McClellan( 0 )
#2 Bennett Hall ( 8) / Salah Abunnaja ( 0 )
#3 Adien Aggarwal ( 8) / Andrew Lerfald ( 4 )
#4 Wyatt Abbitt( 8 ) / Julian Stealey( 1 )
Doubles
#1 Max Phillips-Hartley / Bennett Hall ( 8 ) / Andrew McClellan / Andrew Lerfald ( 0 )
#2 Adien Aggarwal / Dake LaSala ( 8) / Salah Abunnaja / Julian Stealey ( 2)
#3 Wyatt Abbitt / Steven Tian ( 8) / Andrew Rosanna / Owen Minchau ( 2)
TWEET @ahhh_griff
