In its second outing in three days, the Hillsboro girls’ tennis team finished tied for second place among five schools competing at the Ster­ling Invitational on Thursday.

Competing in a round-robin format, Hillsboro scored nine points to finish behind Sterling (13) and tied with Hutchinson Trinity (9). Also competing were St. John (4) and Greensburg (0).

“We had everyone playing different positions and with new partners in doubles,” coach Lynn Wiebe said about her lineup. “Everyone was a bit nervous since they were all in new positions, and the singles players didn’t know they were being moved up until just before the meet. They played with great attitudes and determination.”

Amanda Loewen, stepping in at No. 1 singles for Amanda Faber, who was ill, posted a 1-3 record for third place. Her victory came in an 8-6 match against Greensburg.

In No. 2 singles, Maria Loewen, who thought she would be playing junior varsity, placed second at 2-2 with wins against Sterling (8-6) and Trinity (8-7 [6]).

In No. 1 doubles, Lauren Just and Becky Faber claimed third place at 2-2, including victories over Greens­burg (8-1) and Trinity (8-6).

“Becky and Lauren made some nice adjustments throughout the day,” Wiebe said. “They were communicating and moving well together as a team.”

In No. 2 doubles, Greta Wiebe and Kelsey Bartel placed third at 2-2 with wins against Greens­burg (8-1) and St. John (8-2).

“They just missed first place, losing two tie-breakers by a slim margin of 8-6 and 8-5,” Coach Wiebe said.

Hillsboro Invitational—The Trojans opened the 2007 season Aug. 28 with third-place and seventh-place finishes at their own tournament. The Hillsboro Gold team, featuring varsity players, finished with 30 points, trailing Hesston (52) and a young Wichita Collegiate squad (34).

The Hillsboro Red team, with a second-team lineup, scored 13 points. It trailed Quivera Heights (27), Maranatha (22) and Nicker­son (14), but finished ahead of Clay Center (6).

“There were some nice surprises,” coach Lynn Wiebe said. “The girls really stepped up to the occasion.

“Our returning players were all in new positions this year,” she added. “And this was the first tennis meet that some of our younger players had ever played in. They were very focused and handled themselves very well on the court.”

For Hillsboro Gold, Amanda Faber, playing No. 1 singles, placed second. She defeated Allison Stuckey of Nickerson (8-0) and Amanda Johnson of Collegiate (8-2) before dropping a 4-8 decision in the finals to Miranda Weaver of Hesston.

In No. 2 singles, Lauren Just defeated Kellie Mowrer of Maranatha (8-1) then lost to Natalie Farha of Collegiate (6-8) and to Hillsboro Red’s Becky Faber (5-8) in the battle for fifth place.

In No. 1 doubles, Greta Wiebe and Amber Loewen lost to Brooke Harper and Kylie Combs of Nickerson (6-8) and Lauren Laffler and Amber Wallace of Marantha (5-8) before defeating Hillsboro Red’s Emma Heyen and Hayley Pankratz (8-2) in the seventh-place match.

In No. 2 doubles, Anna Woelk and Maria Loewen finished second. They defeated Kelly Osborn and Courtney Henderson of Nickerson (8-3) and Sarah Sho­walter and Felecia Goodwin of Marantha (8-6) before losing in the finals to Anna Loucks and Ashley Shogren of Hesston (5-8).

For the Red squad, Kelsey Bartel lost to Jessica Montoya of Quivera Heights in the opening round of No. 1 doubles (1-8), then defeated Aurora Coberly of Clay Center (8-1) before losing the fifth-place match to Jessica McAllister of Marantha (3-8).

Becky Faber made it to the third-place match in No. 2 singles by defeating Callie Gustus of Quivera Heights (8-4) before dropping a 1-8 decision in the semifinals to eventual champion Rachel Hageman of Hesston.

In No. 1 doubles, Emma Heyen and Pankratz lost to Shannon Franz and Anna Schmidt of Hesston (0-8) in the first round and to Sarah Straub and Abigail Roth of Clay Center in the consolation bracket to set up their match for seventh place.

In No. 2 doubles, Elise Heyen and Aubrey Meier lost to Hess­ton’s Loucks and Shogren (1-8) and Alex Moore and Margaret Baer of Clay Center (7-8 [3-7]) in their first two matches.

“I felt like it was a good start,” Coach Wiebe said of her team’s effort. “We know that we have a lot of work to do.”

Coming—On Thursday, the Trojan varsity will compete at the Smoky Valley Invitational. Matches begin at 3 p.m.

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