Lill and Nasri Qualify for Section Doubles Tournament
Six players from the Fergus Falls girls’ tennis team participated in the subsection individual tournament at Courts Plus in Fargo on Wednesday. The doubles team of Ashtyn Lill and Leila Nasri won both of their matches, qualifying for the Section Tournament.
Isabella Abrahams and Ruby Ellison entered into the individual singles tournament. Bella drew the #3 seed from Bemidji, Emily Dondelinger. Last Thursday, Dondelinger defeated Abrahams while only dropping one game in the match, so we knew Bella had a very tough draw on her hands. Boy did Bella come to play today. Bella grinded for two hours against her very steady opponent and stayed with her in the match game for game. Bella battled like a champ and played the most offensive-minded tennis we’ve seen from her to date. Today her confidence in her skills showed and she played smart tennis while also taking her chances when she needed to. The upset wasn’t quite meant to be today as Bella fell 7-5, 6-4 in a very tight and highly competitive, high-level match. Bella sits atop our team ladder as our best singles player, which in itself is a very tough job. Today she also showed that her skills and game belong up there with the other first singles players in the section. This was a great match for Bella.
Freshman Ruby Ellison also took the court in the singles tournament against unseeded freshman Kaia Anderson of Perham. Anderson showed a great all-around game and kept Ruby on the run. Ruby hung close at the beginning of the match, but Kaia’s consistency and shot selection was too much in the end and she took the match in straight sets.
Karley Braeger and Cyntreya Lockett.
Cyntreya Lockett, Isabella Abrahams, Karley Braeger, Ruby Ellison, Leila Nasri and Ashtyn Lill.
Ruby Ellison with a backhand.
In the individual doubles tournament, Karley Braeger and Cyntreya Lockett took to the court first with a tough draw against the #1 seeded team from Bemidji, Darby Neis and Madison Jensen. Last week this duo defeated Cyntreya and Karley while only dropping four games. Today was a much different match. Cindy and Karley came out of the gates very ready to play and easily played the best set of their careers in the first set. They were drilling groundies cross court and down the line with great success and finished points at the net with authority on their way to winning the first set 7-5. Bemidji was not going to roll over, however, and really picked up their games after the first set. They showed why they are the top seed in the section with improved consistency and great pace that was just too much for Fergus to handle in the end and they won the match 5-7, 6-1, 6-2.
Ashtyn Lill and Leila Nasri prepped for Leila to return serve.
Next up for Ashtyn and Leila were the #2 seed from Thief River Falls, a pair of seniors, Paige Weets and Bell Hamre. Ashtyn and Leila were not intimidated by their seed. This scenario was so reminiscent of Ashtyn and her partner Mia Marsh’s post season run last year that earned them a trip to the section tournament. The first set was an absolute dog fight going back and forth the entire way, neither team was ever ahead by more than a game. Ashtyn and Leila battled for well over an hour to push the first set to a tie breaker and earn the set 9-7. The girls were simply playing such clean tennis. They served well, controlled the ball on their groundies, and finished points at the net extremely well. The second set continued with much of the same. Ashtyn and Leila found themselves up 5-4 in the second set before hitting their first real hiccup of the day. With a few unforced errors and some increased intensity from TRF, the girls ended up dropping three straight games and thus, the second set. They were headed to a decisive third set to determine which team moved on to the section tournament and which team went home. Ashtyn and Leila came out to a roaring start in the final set, going up 4-0 before even dropping a game. They never wavered in intensity level, belief that they could win, or composure. Then, with calm confidence, they earned the final set 6-1. Today is the just the beginning of their career as a doubles team, as they are now 2-0. Our team needed Leila in the singles lineup this year, so that is where she spent her season. Ashtyn also played more singles than doubles this season. However, she did play first doubles with four different partners this year. This just happened to be their first time as a duo. Things coming together for the girls the way they did was just remarkable. We relied on Leila’s past experience atop the doubles lineup the past couple seasons as well as Ashtyn's versatility to play on either side of our lineup. Things just clicked for them today and they absolutely made the most of this opportunity so far.
On Thursday Ashtyn and Leila will play out the rest of the tournament, beginning at 8:00am. The top four teams play to learn their seeds moving forward into next weekend's section tournament in St. Cloud.
Fergus Falls Results
Emily Dondelinger (Bemidji) defeated Isabella Abrahams (FF) 7-5, 6-4.
Kaia Anderson (Perham) defeated Ruby Ellison (FF) 6-2, 6-1.
Darby Neis/Madison Jensen (Bemidji) defeated Karley Braeger/Cyntreya Lockett (FF) 5-7, 6-1, 6-2.
Ashtyn Lill/Leila Nasri (FF) defeated Maddie Petrovich/Lila Rothenberger (EGF) 6-2, 6-3.Ashtyn Lill/Leila Nasri (FF) defeated Bell Hamre/Paige Weets (TRF) 7-6(7), 5-7, 6-1.
Our other doubles team was a new combo of Ashtyn Lill and Leila Nasri. Ashtyn and Leila drew an unseeded team from East Grand Forks in Maddie Petrovich and Lila Rothenberger. The duo started the match little shaky, but quickly worked out the kinks and took care of business. Ashtyn and Leila both have very consistent all-court games, so their efficiency to stroke the ball from the baseline until they have an opportunity to finish points at the net is a real asset for this duo. Ashtyn and Leila took their first round match fairly routinely at 6-2, 6-3.
Ashtyn Lill and Leila Nasri after Qualifying for the Section Tournament.
Ashtyn Lill delivers a backhand.
