Bedford North Lawrence girls tennis takes on Martinsville in sectional opener
BLOOMINGTON — Bedford North Lawrence girls tennis must like playing indoors.
That's the best explanation Joni Stigall had for her team's dominance Wednesday in Sectional 17 action against Martinsville. The Stars cruised past the Artesians, winning all five matches to move on to the semifinals.
The teams were originally scheduled to play at Bloomington South, the sectional host, but the match was moved inside to the IU Tennis Center due to rain.
BNL (13-5) was in complete control from the outset, across nearly every court. Martinsville (2-9) won just one set in total.
"They were playing really well," BNL head coach Joni Stigall said. "We just played smart, volleyed well, served well. Hopefully we can carry that through to tomorrow night."
Doubles dominance
The Stars shined the brightest on the doubles courts Wednesday.
BNL's No. 1 doubles team, junior Mallory Pride and Bella Stigall, shut out Martinsville juniors Kaitlin Collins and Ainsley Lowder 6-0, 6-0. Pride and Stigall never allowed Collins and Lowder to get comfortable in the match, and wore them down in the few opportunities they had.
The Stars' No. 2 team, sophomores Izzy Alldredge and Kenley Craig, didn't completely blank their opponents, but they still made quick work of Martinsville. Alldredge and Craig defeated Artesians juniors Hannah Niese and Selah Wolff 6-1, 6-2.
Coach Stigall said her doubles teams have been consistently solid this season and didn't give her much pause in this match.
"My two doubles, I don't worry about them very often. I know they can figure things out," she said. "I don't even have to talk to them that much in a normal match. When (the No. 1 doubles team is) playing that well, it's hard to even get a point off them."
Stars singles step up
On the No. 1 singles court, BNL senior Rachel Kidd took care of business.
Kidd excelled in her match, dispatching Martinsville senior Katherine Fulkerson 6-1, 6-3. Fulkerson won two straight games with her back against the wall, down 5-1 in the final set. But after both players talked with their coaches, Kidd put the match away in the next game.
Stigall was impressed with Kidd's performance. During that conversation near the end of the match, Stigall simply told Kidd she was playing well and to keep it up.
"Rachel played a really great game, hitting good winner shots and just playing smart," Stigall said. "Just as far as hitting the right shots at the right time, making the right decisions, and being patient. She doesn't like to be patient very often, but she was more patient tonight."
BNL sophomore Nadia Anderson is a junior varsity player, but she was thrust into the spotlight because of an injury. Anderson slotted into the No. 2 singles match against Martinsville senior Lauren Leonard, and Anderson more than held her own. She won in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2.
"It was great to see her get her fist sectional win ever. That's a good thing for her," Stigall said. "That's a lot of pressure on her, but she's handling it really well."
End of the road
Martinsville wrapped up its season on a tough note.
The Artesians dropped four of its final five matches to end the season, including Wednesday.
The only Martinsville player to win a set was at No. 3 singles. Senior Alyssa McGauley took the first set off BNL junior Italy Lewis, 4-6. But Lewis won the second set, 6-3, and outlasted McGauley 10-4 in the tiebreaker.
Assistant coach Mike Johnson led the team for essentially the entire season, with head coach Brannigan Hewitt on maternity leave.
Johnson told his players to keep their heads up as their matches concluded. He knows it's been a long and challenging season for his team.
"The girls all played their game. We just had a few self-inflicted shot errors, I guess," Martinsville assistant coach Mike Johnson said. "(BNL) placed the ball in some pretty good spots that made it difficult for us to get to. But I thought all of our girls played real hard and played with a lot of pride."
On deck
The sectional semifinals are Thursday at 5 p.m. at Bloomington South. Panthers athletic director J.R. Holmes was optimistic the action can return to the outdoor courts for those semifinals.
BNL advances to take on Bloomington North (10-5). Meanwhile, Bloomington South (10-4) will face Edgewood (9-8).
Stigall said that if her team plays the way it did Wednesday, they'll be in good shape.
"We haven't seen North yet this year, but we know they're good," Stigall said. "We're just going to go in and give it our best. I think our doubles have good shots. Maybe (we can) drive them crazy a little bit, and (returning) everything, that's going to be our game plan. We'll just try to be encouraging and say, 'You have nothing to lose, so just get out there and play.'"
Follow Herald-Times sports reporter Seth Tow on Twitter @SethTow, or email him at stow@heraldt.com.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Bedford North Lawrence girls tennis takes on Martinsville in sectional
