Oskaloosa Girls Tennis Team Shows Strong Effort at Saydel Districts

The Oskaloosa Girls Tennis team hit the road early on Monday morning, heading to the Saydel District with the aim of advancing to the state tournament. Although team scores weren’t being tracked, the girls put up a strong performance, with five out of six advancing through the first round.

“The girls responded really well as five of our six girls made it through the first round,” said Coach Bryan Kime. “All the girls played really hard, and as coaches, that’s all you can ask for.”

Despite the challenges presented by the high-pressure environment, the team gained valuable experience. Out of the current lineup, Oskaloosa will only be losing one senior, Jenna DeBoef. Coach Kime praised her effort despite a challenging draw.

“Jenna probably had the hardest draw out of all the matches to start the day,” said Kime.

Though team scores weren’t officially recorded, Coach Kime estimated their performance would have earned them a fourth-place finish. Only the top two teams advanced to the state tournament.

“If they were keeping team score today, we would’ve finished in fourth, but in this format, only the top two go to state, so no points were on the line,” he noted. “With that said, we are really pleased with the effort of the girls.”

Oskaloosa will be back in action Friday morning in team play against Grinnell, starting at 9 a.m.