By JOSH BURRIS
The Bluffton Lady Tigers took a step in the right direction last tennis season, finishing with a 5-9 overall record.
The Tigers had limited varsity experience because of the cancelled 2020 season, with some girls seeing action their freshman year. Coach Hunter Cunningham was expecting it to be a building-up season, and while the record was not all that glamorous, she was proud that it was better than the last time they took the court..
“It was kind of a building year for us, and I didn’t expect us to have as many wins,” Cunningham said. “We were super excited, and there were a couple matches last year that we should have won that we lost 2-3.”
The program has potential to keep improving as well with 25 girls coming out to play tennis this season. Most of them either have one year of playing experience or are coming out to play for the first time.
It’s one of the largest turnouts Bluffton has had in perhaps a decade, and Cunningham hopes it can lead to success down the road.
“It’s definitely a lot larger than what I think we’ve had in the last five to 10 years, which is exciting because I’m losing six seniors this year. So I’m hoping with this number coming in that we can keep growing the program and turn it into something positive.”
Returning for Bluffton this season are seniors Monroe Heller, Madi Fenstermaker, Emily Mann, Cadence Engle, and Olivia Funk and junior Emma Baumgartner. Heller and Baumgartner played No. 1 and 2 singles respectively last year and will continue to do so. Cunningham said beyond them she may play around with her lineup for a couple weeks.
Fenstermaker saw action mostly at No. 3 singles last year, but will be moving to doubles as Cunningham said she is looking stronger near the net. Mann and Funk mixed between No. 1 and 2 doubles last year, and Engle spent time in doubles and No. 3 singles.
Cunningham said sophomores Alexis Grover and Gretchen Crist will be competing for that final varsity spot.
In terms of goals and expectations, Cunningham does not have a set record or win total in mind for the team, but hopes to see them continue to defeat teams they did last year and maybe turn some of their close losses into wins.
“Our goal this year is to come back and continue to beat those teams that we beat last year, but even those teams that we lost to 2-3 and were super close, we are just going to try to get those teams and hopefully even have a better season and more wins this year.”
Just because the Tigers beat a team last year does not mean they will beat them again though. Cunningham said they cannot take any opponent too lightly because every year things change and teams can improve.
She also hopes they can compete for a ACAC title. The Tigers were not able to pick up any wins against any of their three ACAC opponents last year, and Cunningham said getting past Adams Central will be a challenge.
“I’ve taught the girls we don’t go into a match saying we are going to win because we beat them last year,” Cunningham said. “I’ve had teams that are stronger and the next year were not as strong. So our goal is just to keep going in strong and hopefully get that win, but never assume it’s easy. And obviously we always have the girls wanting to win conference, but we know that’s a super, hard task because Adams Central is always a hard team to beat.”
Besides Adams Central, Cunningham is looking forward to their first match against Norwell – which is a sectional opponent – and a new match on the schedule against Carroll. While the Tigers may have a hard time against Carroll, which is one of the state’s stronger programs, Cunningham said it will be good for them to face top competition.
“I’ve always told the girls they (Carroll) will be the best match of your life because you always play better when your competition is way better than you,” Cunningham said. “I think it will be a good experience for them.”
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