Broncos tennis season concludes at Regionals

The Lind-Ritzville/Sprague tennis season came to a close on May 19 at the Regional Tournament. The Broncos had five athletes qualify to compete at the tournament and battled for the chance to make it the State Championships.

In the singles contest, Claire Kessler played two competitive sets against two Freeman athletes.

Kessler lost the first match to Sarah Simmerman 0-6, 1-6 and battled in the second match against Kaitlyn Strahl, but it ultimately ended in a 4-6, 4-6 loss for the Bronco athlete.

Head Coach Lorrie Swanger said Kessler played very well at the Regional Tournament, especially considering this was her first season of playing singles, and only her second year of competing in tennis.

Swanger said ultimately, Kessler faced two opponents who had considerably more experience on the court.

In the doubles contest, Megan Buriak and Katheran Gingrich raced a tough Deer Park team in the first round, losing 1-6, 2-6. The duo bounced back in their second match to earn a 6-2, 6-1 victory against St. George’s.

The final match of the day went in favor of Lakeside, who earned a 6-0, 6-2 win over the Broncos team. Swanger said the girls both played well, but were set up against a lot of experienced athletes.

Zane Swanger and Awson Wheeler lost the first round of their doubles matches to Riverside, 0-6, 2-6. The team rallied in the second match to defeat St. George’s No. 2 doubles team 6-3, 6-2.

The win moved them into a match against Freeman to play for third in Regionals.

The Broncos lost the match 3-6, 1-6, but went on to defeat St. George’s No. 1 doubles team to place fifth in Regionals and qualify as alternates for the State Championships.

Coach Swanger said the first day of Regionals was extremely rainy, which forced the Broncos boys’ team to play all four matches on Saturday.

Swanger added, “As always, our kids walked tall and represented us all with Bronco Pride.”