1998 KANELAND TENNIS

Review the 1997 Kaneland Tennis Season

Junior "Katy Lee" Holmes waits to hear her name called at "Knights Under the Lights" while Hazel Suarez, Bonnie Elliott , Lisa Molitor and Jessica Lightfoot wait behind.

1998 Kaneland Tennis Results

Kaneland 1 Wheaton Academy 9

The Lady Knights could only sneak out one win in the doubles matches and were shutout in the singles. Lauren Hubbard and Nicole Runde won their doubles match 6-4 1-6 and 9-7. Rachel Clark and Jolene Gruenke almost won their match 6-3, 6-8, 4-7.

"It always nice to get the first match jitters over with," said Coach Cindy Miller. "The girls could have made less unforced errors and they could have served better."

Kaneland 0 Geneva 6

The Lady Knights ran up against a very strong Geneva team and lost 6-0. JV lost too, 7-0.

Kaneland 0 Oswego 7

The Lady Knights continue to struggle with their serves as they lost to Geneva 7-0. Kaneland doubles pair of Amanda Beasley and Lindsay Feltes forced a third set but lost 2-6.

Kaneland 2 Sycamore 5

The Lady Knights are still looking for their first win as they fell to Sycamore 5-2. Kaneland singles were shutout but in the doubles Amanda Beasley and Lindsay Feltes won their match 6-2, 6-2. Nicole Runde and Lauren Hibbard also won their match 7-5, 5-7, and 6-4.

Coach Cindy Miller said, "The girls played much better. It was nice to get a couple of wins. The serve and volley were much stronger."

Kaneland 2 Lemont 5

Knights continue to struggle as the suffer their second set back in a row by a 5-2 score. Emily Kresse won the first Kaneland singles match of the year winning 6-1, 6-3. Lindsay Feltes and Amanda Beasley won their second doubles match in a row 7-5, 6-4.

Rosary Freshman/Sophmore Tournament

On Saturday, September 12, the Kaneland Tennis Team participated in the Rosary Freshmen/Sophmore Tournament including Kaneland, Rosary, Montini and West Aurora.

The Knights made a good appearance with singles player Emily Kresse winning all three matches: 6/0, 6/2 against Montini, 6/1, 6/1 against Rosary, and 6/1, 7/5 against current state champions West Aurora.

Freshman Lisa Molitor, had an impressive win against Rosary at 6/0, 6/0 and Montini with a score 6/0, 6/1.

Coach Cindy Miller commented, "Our singles teams of Lisa Molitor and Emily Kresse played their best game of tennis this season."

Sophmore doubles team Lauren Hibbard and Nicole Runde won their match against Rosary with scores of 4/6, 6/2 and a tie breaker of 7/4. They also won the match against Montini 6/3, 6/2 . Coach Miller noted that although they lost their third match to West Aurora, they played a good game of tennis against a tough opponent.

Sophmore doubles team Nicole Runde and Lauren Hibbard celebrate their wins over Rosary and Montini at the Rosary Tournament.

Junior Varsity doubles team Becky Faber and Megan Gruber also won two of their three matches with a 6/2 and 6/3 score against Rosary, and an exciting win over West Aurora with a 6/0 and 6/1.

The Knights placed second among the four teams.

Kaneland 7 East Aurora 0

The Kaneland Knights Tennis Team grabbed their first win of the season against East Aurora on Wednesday with a score of 7-0 varsity and 6-1 junior varsity. Varsity winners included singles players Sara Elliott (6-4, 8-6, 7-3), Emily Kresse (6-2, 6-0) and Vicky Mansfield (6-2, 6-4).

Winning doubles teams were Amanda Beasley and Lindsay Feltes (6-2, 6-0), Lauren Hibbard and Nicole Runde (6-0, 6-2), Shannon Minson and Andrea Ruetten (6-0, 6-2) and Katy Holmes and Trisha Greene (7-5, 6-2).

JV singles winners were Lisa Molitor (8-0), Jessica Lightfoot (8-1), Bonnie Elliott (8-0) and Alyssa Bevans (8-2). Winning JV doubles included Joleen Gruenke and Rachel Clark (8-1), and Meghan Gruber and Becky Faber (8-1).

Assistant Coach Jim Butler commented, "I'm having a good time today!"

Kaneland 4 Yorkville 3

The varsity tennis team took their second victory as they defeated Yorkville 4 to 3. Singles player Sara Elliott led the team with a terrific performance winning 6-0, 6-0.

Doubles team of Lindsay Feltes and Amanda Beasley went to a tiebreaker winning 7-3 after two games 6-3 and 3-6. Doubles Nicole Runde and Lauren Hibbard defeated their opponents 6-4, 6-4 and Trisha Greene and Katey Holmes won 6-4, 6-3.

Team records to date are 2 wins and 5 losses. In conference the Knights have won 1 and lost 2. Junior Varsity lost their match to Yorkville 2-3, with singles wins by Lisa Molitor 8-7 and Jessica Lightfoot 8-4.

Quad Tournament at Yorkville - Doubles

Kaneland 4 Yorkville 2

Kaneland started out strong with four of six teams defeating Yorkville. Sara Elliott and Emily Kresse led the scoring with an 8-1. Teams Nicole Runde and Lauren Hibbard (8-4), Shannon Minson and Andrea Ruetten (8-4) and Vicky Mansfield and Jessica Lightfoot(8-3) had strong leads contributing to the match win.

Kaneland 2 Lemont 3

Shannon Minson and Andrea Ruetten (8-7) and Vicky Mansfied and Jessica Lightfoot (8-7) scored the two winning matches for Kaneland in a close competition.

Kaneland 1 Sycamore 5

Sycamore proved to be a tough opponent with five of their six teams defeating the Knights. Emily Kresse and Sara Elliott brought in the single win of 8-5 in a tough match at the end of the day.

Kaneland 7 Elmwood Park 0

The Kaneland Knights won their third match of the season defeating Elmwood Park in every match. Sara Elliott (6-1, 6-2), Emily Kresse (6-4,6-1) and Vicki Mansfield (7-5, 6-1) defeated Elmwood Park in all singles matches.

Varsity Doubles winners included Lindsay Feltes and Amanda Beasley (6-2, 6-1), Lauren Hibbard and Nicole Runde (3-6, 6-3, 6-4), Shannon Minson and Andrea Ruetten (6-1, 6-3) and Trisha Greene and Katey Holmes (6-1, 6-2).

The win brings the team's season record up to 3 wins and 5 losses.

Kaneland 4 West Chicago 2

The Lady Knights Tennis team is on a winning streak as they defeated West Chicago 4-2. Coach Cindy Miller commented, "We're on a roll .. I hope we can keep up this momentum!"

Singles player Emily Kresse (6-2, 6-0) and Lisa Moliter (6-3, 6-0) notched strong victories over their opponents. Lauren Hibbard and Nicole Runde, playing first doubles, downed their competition 6-1, 6-1, while second doubles Andrea Ruetten and Shannon Minson posted wins of 6-2 and 7-6.

Kaneland 4 Lisle 1

The Kaneland Lady Knights continued their winning streak as they defeated Lisle. Kaneland sophmore Emily Kresse, playing second singles won 2-6, 6-2, 6-4.

The three doubles teams were all victorious in their matches. Playing number one doubles, Lindsay Feltes and Amanda Beasley won 7-5, 4-6, 6-2. Lauren Hibbard and Nicole Runde continued their winning streak with a 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 and Shannon Minson and Andrea Ruetten downed their opponents with an impressive 6-1,6-1.

Junior Varsity also won their match 4-1. Both JV singles defeated Lisle with first singles Lisa Moliter winning a solid 8-0, and second singles Jessica Lightfoot winning 8-3. Despite playing under the lights and amidst the bugs, number two team Rachel Clark and Jolene Gruenke won 8-5, while number 3 team Megan Gruber and Becky Faber defeated their competitors 8-4.

Lemont Tennis Invitational Tournament

The Knights took 4th Place behind Chicago Christian, Lemont and Oak Lawn in the Lemont Tennis Invitational Tournament . The Lady Knights defeated Coal City, Elmwood Park, Montini and Romeoville. No. 1 and 2 varsity singles and doubles played in the Invitational.

No. 2 singles Emily Kresse took third place as she defeated Coal City, Oak Lawn and finally Chicago Christian (6-2, 6-3) which earned her spot in the tournament. Sara Elliott, No. 1 singles narrowly missed third place in a difficult third match played in 94 degree heat against Oak Lawn.

No. 1 doubles team Lindsay Feltes and Amanda Beasley also had a competitive third match going for third place doubles against Montini but were defeated despite a well-played game. No. 2 doubles Lauren Hibbard and Nicole Runde defeated Montini 8-3, but lost to Lemont and Oak Lawn.

Kaneland 7 Riverside-Brookfield 0

The Lady Knights upped their Suburban Prairie Conference record to 3-2 (5-5 overall) when they blanked Riverside-Brookfield on the Knights' home turf. Defeating their competition, No. 1 Sara Elliott (1-6, 6-0, 6-0), No. 2 sophmore Emily Kresse (6-1, 6-4) and No. 3 Vicki Mansfield swept the three wins in singles' play.

Continuing the streak were doubles players No. 1 Lindsay Feltes and Amanda Beasley (6-2, 6-4), No. 2 sophmores Lauren Hibbard and Nicole Runde (6-1, 6-2) and No. 4 team Trisha Greene and Katey Holmes (5-7, 6-4, 6-2). No. 3 duo Shannon Minson and Andrew Ruetten won by default.

Junior Varsity also scored impressively with a 5-1 win. Both JV singles players No. 1 Lisa Moliter and No. 2 Jessica Lightfoot dominated their opponents with solid 8-0 wins. All three doubles teams dominated the match with No. 1 Rachel Clark and Jolene Gruenke (8-4), No. 2 Becky Faber and Megan Gruber (8-0) and No. 3 Alyssa Bevins and Jena Mehr (8-1) bringing the JV to victory.

Kaneland 4 Mendota 3

Playing the last home game of the season, the Lady Knights continued their winning streak with a 4-3 defeat over Mendota. The win moved the Knights over .500 to 6-5 and 3-2 for the conference.

Singles winners were No. 2 Emily Kresse (6-3, 6-1) and No. 3 Vicky Mansfield (6-1, 6-0).

No. 3 doubles team Shannon Minson and Andrea Ruetten brought in the third win with a (6-1, 6-0). No. 4 doubles Trisha Greene and Katey Holmes won with an equally impressive 6-1,6-0.

Junior Varsity lost their match 3-5.

Kaneland 0 Rochelle 7

The Lady Knights broke their seven game winning streak when they were shutout by Rochelle.

SPC Conference Tournament

The Kaneland Lady Knights Tennis Team hosted their conference's final meet of the season on October 10th. The Knights finished third place behind conference winner Sycamore and number two Lemont.

Coach Cindy Miller said, "Every participant in the conference match placed, taking home two second-places and five third-places."

No. 1 singles Sara Elliott took third, first defeating Evergreen Park 6-4, 6-4, and Lemont 6-1, 6-0. Riverside-Brookfield forfeited their consolation match giving Sara third place.

No. 2 singles Emily Kresse earned a second place finish with a 7-6, 6-0 defeat over Riverside-Brookfield and an easy 6-0, 6-3 win over Yorkville. She lost first place to Sycamore in a tough final match.

Jessica Lightfoot, playing third singles advanced to the second round with a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Evergreen Park but was defeated by Sycamore. Her opponent for the third match, Yorkville, forfeited the match giving her third place.

In the doubles competition, number one Lindsay Feltes and Amanda Beasley earned second place in the conference. After a first round bye, they played a tough three-set match against Riverside-Brookfield, winning 5-7, 7-5, 6-2. In the championship round they played another tough three set match losing 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.

Second doubles Nicole Runde and Lauren Hibbard defeated Riverside-Brookfield in the first round 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 but lost to Lemont in the second set winning the consolation bracket and taking third place in the conference.

Shannon Minson and Andrea Ruetten at third doubles went to the second round with a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Evergreen Park. They lost to Sycamore by a tough 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 and were awarded third place as Lemont forfeited the consolation bracket match.

Trisha Greene and Katey Holmes had a first round bye and then lost to Lemont in the second match. They defeated Yorkville 6-3, 7-6 (7-2) to win the consolation bracket and took third place for fourth doubles.

1998 Tennis Season Summary

After a disheartening 0-4 start, the Lady Knights turned things around to win six of their last eight matches of the season. Coach Miller noted that the girls found out it is a lot more fun to win than to lose!

Miller commented, "This was an unbelievable season for the team. To go from a record of 1-11 to 6-6 overall is a tremendous improvement over last year."

She predicts that the team will continue to mature in their level of skills and move into the 99 season with a winning attitude.

Information is provided by Chris Hibbard the Tennis Page Sponsor

Other Activities

On Saturday, Septemer 5, the Knights Tennis Team held a car wash in Maple Park to coordinate with the annual Labor Day Softball Tournament. The fund raiser turned out to be a huge success as the team made $513 in just 5 hours. Money will go towards team expenses, warmups and hopefully a family pizza party at the end of the season.

Captain Lindsay Feltes praised the girls for their team spirit and energy. "The girls not only made money, but had fun doing it. They showed the same team spirit as they do on the court."

The team plans to repeat the fundraiser next Labor Day. They also wish to thank the Maple Park Fire Department for the use of their facilities and their cooperation as well as the many customers who entrusted them to wash their cars!

The 1998 Kaneland Tennis team

Top Row L to R: Emily Kresse, Amanda Beasley, Sara Elliott, Trisha Green, Lauren Hibbard, Meghan Gruber and Shannon Minson, Bonnie Elliott. Second Row L to R: Nicole Runde, Alyssa Bevins, Hazel Suarez, Lisa Molitor, Becky Faber, Robin Soto, Joleen Greunke. Bottom Row L to R: Katie Holmes, Lindsay Feltes, Jenna Mehr, Jessica Lightfoot, Rachel Clark, Andrea Ruetten.

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