'Beeters top Fort Benton at Home; Excel in Townsend at the Dawg Bite Tournament

The Chinook Sugarbeeter Tennis team had a busy, but highly successful week on the courts. First, they hosted the Fort Benton Longhorns on Tuesday, April 25 coming away with 12 wins against just 3 losses. The team headed to Townsend on Friday and Saturday to take part in the Dawg Bite Invitational Tournament.

Junior Mya Berreth had another stellar performance Tuesday against the Longhorns. Berreth opened with a 6-3, 7-5 win. She then teamed up with sophomore Rilee Molyneaux in a doubles match securing a 6-0 win. Molyneaux also won her singles match 6-0. Ashlyn Jensen won a pair of singles matches by scores of 6-0 and 6-1. The Beeters No. 1 doubles team of senior Lexi Pitkanen and senior Torin Cecrle played well as did the duo of freshman Gracie Skoyen and Falyn Cecrle.

In Townsend the 'Beeters were once again in the field of this prestigious tournament and turned in a solid effort. The 'Beeters went 6-2 against the Longhorns with Berreth, Falyn Cecrle, Jenson and Molyneaux going undefeated in singles. The doubles team of Cecrle and Pitkanen also picked up a win.

The 'Beeters had plenty of success against the Great Falls Central Catholic Mustangs as well going 5-0. Against the tournament host, Townsend, Chinook dominated, topping the home team 5-1. The 'Beeter's success continued against Jefferson High School with a 6-0 sweep. Chinook split with Choteau 1-1, topped Three Forks 4-2. The 'Beeters had their way with the Cut Bank Wolves going 2-0. Chinook added a 3-1 win over East Helena to wrap up the tournament.

Head coach, Janelle Deanon, was pleased with the effort the girls put forth, "We finally had a full week of tennis, with practice outside all week, and three days of great matches! This week practice was all about consistent shots. We worked long and hard on how to hit different kinds of balls that an opponent might hit back to you. It was also a time where we were able to solidify our varsity postseason roster making a slight change to our second doubles team going with Jenna Liddle and Jeni Mord."

Deanon added, "Falyn Cecrle transitioned into singles beautifully this weekend and I think our team is stronger than ever. Going to Townsend for the Dawg Bite tournament was wonderful, we had gorgeous weather even though they told us to watch out for the 40 mph wind gusts. The breeze was truly a welcome bonus though when we hit 70+ degrees."

The benefits of competing in Townsend is evident, "The girls were lucky and got to play some competitive matches against teams we wouldn't have seen otherwise until state, such as Choteau, Jefferson, Townsend, and Three Forks. Lexi and Torin had their first losses of the season on Tuesday, but they bounced back and continued crushing their competition this weekend. The team also had to play several rounds of tie breakers, we won some, lost some, but they are good learning experiences as we get to this part of the season and start playing longer matches. Overall, it was a great week of tennis."