TUMWATER — If a lineup needed to be finalized for the Evergreen Conference and Class 2A District 4 tournaments, there’d be some uncertainty for the W.F. West High School girls tennis team.
At the Bearcats disposal is a returning state-placing doubles tandem, an emerging duo that has consistently been at No. 1 all spring and two singles players that qualified for districts a season ago.
Still, within three weeks, decisions will be coming.
“I have a strong feeling that my 1s and 2s could be the 1s and 2s for the league,” Bearcats head coach Megan Wellander said. “They are truly interchangeable. They shocked themselves a little bit with how successful they were and now they know it is accessible. They’ve pushed themselves.
W.F. West swept doubles and all of its wins were in straight sets, dispatching Tumwater 5-1 in an EvCo dual on Thursday afternoon at Tumwater High School. For the second straight season, the Bearcats are en route to a perfect league mark.
What transpired for a group with nearly everyone back was an offseason of dedication and fine-tuning their game.
Continued success has followed.
“They’re very uplifting,” Bearcats doubles player Katelyn Wood said. “The aggressiveness and wanting to play hard really transferred over.”
Perhaps the most competitive matches have been on the Jack State tennis courts in practice.
Wood and Lilly Hueffed, eighth place in Class 2A last year in Seattle, played just their fourth doubles match together and came away with a 6-0, 6-0 win on Thursday at No. 2 doubles.
Why they haven’t been at No. 1 doubles to this point is Manta Ceesay and Ellie Mittge have been anchoring down that spot in the lineup. Ceesay and Mittge have also upended Wood and Hueffed in a couple of challenge matches.
“It is pretty impressive,” Wood said of their other tandem. “The other schools will be shocked. They’re a strong team; me and Lilly are a strong team.”
Even so, Hueffed and Wood are starting to re-ignite the chemistry. Hueffed took a week-and-a-half away from the team, yet rarely missed any tennis due to weather.
The senior still made time to improve her craft.
“I always feel bad leaving my partner hanging like that,” she said. “I always made sure to keep up on my tennis.”
Ceesay and Mittge, on No. 2 and No. 3 doubles last year with different partners, won 6-3, 6-1 over the duo of Rosie Uhlmeyer and Ashlyn Spencer, who came close to going to districts.
Wellander had a hunch those two would work, due to contrasting styles.
“They have jived really well,” Wellander said. “They are thriving in consistency. Ellie brings consistency and Manta brings aggression and in times where they need to reverse those roles, they do.”
Even after leaving Seattle with hardware, Hueffed is hopeful for another placement. She isn’t looking too far ahead, rather staying in the moment.
“Just to get back to state,” she said. “One point at a time.”
Emma Hamilton and Emery Dalrymple secured victories at No. 1 and No. 2 singles, respectively. Those two have also gone back and forth in those two spots in various duals. Tumwater’s lone victory came from Adela Schmiedeberg at No. 3 singles in straight sets.
W.F. West faces Black Hills on Friday while Tumwater takes on Capital in a non-league contest also on Friday.
