Tennis gets started Saturday
Ryan Gembala returns a ball during a drill at BHS tennis practice last week. The tennis team kicks off its season this week with a match in Columbia Falls on Saturday. Jordan Dawson/Bigfork Eagle
It may not quite feel like spring yet, but Bigfork High School's tennis team is braving the weather as their tennis season gets into full swing.
There are a total of 34 kids out for this year's team. Out of the 15 players on the boys team, all but four played last year. Newcomers are sophomores John Lyon, Felix Pepper and Fabian Zavala and freshman Colter Mahlum. Upperclassmen on the team are seniors Scott Taylor and Sean Barrett and juniors Bridger Mahlum and Alex Neu.
The girls team of 19 players has six that are new to the team. They are junior Charlee Edwards, sophomores Charlie Boust and Haily Hall and freshmen Kirsti Persinger, McKinze Shults and Kianna Wicklund. Upperclassmen are seniors Amy Gembala, AnnMarie Losee, Nicolette Peterson, Ariana Shults and Jennifer Wirth and juniors Jade Bosic, Kelly Deaton, Kara Love, Kaitlyn Shults and Claire Wilken.
Paul Wallin is the head coach of both the boys and girls tennis teams and Matt Porrovecchio and Denny Sabo are assistants.
"I think we have a really strong group of athletes' Porrovecchio said. "Right now the boys are led by Bridger and Scott and the girls are led by Jade and Kelly. All the players, especially the girls, are really aggressive and are looking to challenge each other and move up in the rankings, so those could change very easily."
"We will mix and match throughout the first part of the season to give individuals different experiences," Wallin said. "The latter part of the season the tennis team will more closely resemble what we will submit for a divisional lineup."
The team will travel to Columbia Falls at noon on Saturday, March 28, for its first match.