CHS boys' tennis stays unbeaten with win over North Central

The Cheney high school boy's tennis team kept their undefeated streak alive as they defeated North Central, 7-0, March 26, improving their record to 4-0.

Mason Van Stone (No. 1 singles) defeated NC's John Schultz, 6-2, 6-4. Van Stone brings his record to 4-0 for the year.

Head coach Jesse Erickson said Van Stone was down in points during the second set, but made a comeback after finding a weakness with Schultz's backhand.

Ryan Axtell (No. 3 singles) and Jordan Kauwe (No. 4 singles) also picked up wins over their NC opponents. Axtell defeated Jarrel Walter 6-1, 6-1, and Kauwe beat Dan Ritz, 6-2, 6-4.

Kauwe was also down in points during the second set, but he attacked the net and continued to be aggressive to finish the match.

"We've been practicing on finding out what our opponent's weaknesses are and exploiting them" Erickson said. "Jordan was attacking the net and the other kid had trouble with that."

Solomon Springberry (No. 2 singles) defeated the Indians' Joshua Cosino, 6-1, 6-1, in his first match of the season. Erickson said Springberry had been out with the flu and was ineligible for the first part of the season.

"He showed no signs of fatigue," Erickson said. "He was hustling the whole time."

There was a bit of a shakeup in Blackhawks' doubles teams. A week after going 3-0 in singles action, Shogo Starr moved to doubles where he teamed with Adam Passey (No. 1 doubles) to defeat NC's San Yancey and Jaden Gage, 6-0, 6-1. Erickson said Starr and Passey were a pair on JV last year and have "good communication."

Newcomer Talmadge Dickson was paired Tristan Bennett (No. 2 singles). The duo defeated the Indians' Adam Miller and Alfaiando Zepeda, 6-1, 6-2. Like Springberry, Dickson had missed the first part of the season due to illness.

At No. 3 doubles, the pair of Luke Huguenin and Britton Williams defeated NC's Josh Stermer and Frank Fuchs, 6-1, 6-0. Huguenin and Williams, who have been partners since the start of the year, extended their record to 4-0.

The team was scheduled to play West Valley, March 27, but that match was rescheduled due to rain. They also played Lakeside, April 1 and will travel to Rogers to play the Pirates, April 3.

Al Stover can be reached at al@cheneyfreepress.com.