PHS learning curve continues
PLYMOUTH — The learning process for a young and inexperienced Plymouth boys tennis team continued Thursday night.
Goshen jumped out to large leads on four courts and came back for a threeset win on the fifth to defeat Plymouth, 5-0, in Northern Lakes Conference action at the Mary Beth Hunter Tennis Complex Thursday.
“(Goshen) is more experienced, especially at doubles, but we did not play our style,” said Plymouth head coach Brad Haeck. “We got frustrated. We didn’t play the style we should be playing. If we play our style and get beat or outplayed, you can handle that as a coach, but we don’t even show the competitiveness that we need to. We don’t even do the stuff we practice so I’m very frustrated.”
The best match was at No. 3 singles, where Plymouth’s Carter Snyder and Goshen’s Isaac Stahly battled for three hours. Ironically, it did not start out like it would be the last court to finish as Snyder won the first set, 6-2, then held a 5-2 advantage in the second before Stahly rallied. The Redhawk freshman tied the second set at 6-6, forcing a tiebreaker, and took an early 5-2 lead. Snyder scored three straight to get back in it though and held match points on five different occasions after that, but Stahly eventually won, 15-13. The third set was close as well, but Stahly took an early 2-1 lead and finished it at 6-4.
“I think he got tentative when we got up in the second set and I think he got tentative in the tiebreaker,” Haeck said of the sophomore Snyder. “Carter battled back when he could have folded in the tiebreaker and had several opportunities to win - or lose - so he did show some mental toughness there, but I do think he got a little tentative. It’s a learning process for sure.
We’ve been preaching growth and the process of getting better every day and we’ve seen strides in the right direction as a team. We’ve lost a lot of close matches, but I don’t know what this match was.”
The Redhawks’ doubles teams, made up of three
seniors and a junior, lost just five games to Plymouth’s duo’s made up of three sophomores and a junior. Freshman prodigy Pi Wellington took the third team point for the visitors with a straight-set win at No. 1 singles, although Plymouth’s Drew Harrell played a number of good points. After losing the first set, the Pilgrims’ Bennett Christy held a 5-4 lead in the second set before succumbing, 7-5.
Plymouth’s next match will be another NLC test, this time at Northridge on Monday.
• GOSHEN 5, PLYMOUTH 0
At Plymouth
SINGLES: 1. Pi Wellington def. Drew Harrell 6-0, 6-3; 2. Moses Sawatzky def. Bennett Christy 6-2, 7-5; 3. Isaac Stahly def. Carter Snyder 2-6, 7-6 (13), 6-4;
DOUBLES: 1. Carlos Lichty-carter Schmucker def. Matt Manzuk-easton Strain 6-2, 6-0; 2. Will Nisley-brenton Pham def. Liam Fort-cam Shively 6-0, 6-3
Records: Plymouth 3-11, Goshen 6-6