No. 1 Morison picks up win at Bigfork

Jake Morison had to scramble a bit on

Saturday, but after some strategic tweaks, the Bulldogs No. 1

singles tennis player picked up his first win of the season.

Morison defeated Bigfork’s Dylan Rickenbac in three sets, including

a 7-2 win in the final frame.

“Jake is looking good,” Whitefish coach

Chris Schwaderer said. “We made some adjustments in the last match,

then he rolled. It’s a good sign.”

Whitefish’s Connor Ellis tallied a

three-set win over Seth Rossman in the No. 4 singles slot, while

Hanz Munzing and Holden Roberts earned a win at No. 1 doubles,

although Bigfork took the dual at 4-3.

“I knew going in that Bigfork was tough

and had some good players returning,” Schwaderer said.

Whitefish’s lineup wasn’t at full

strength, with a number of top singles players missing due to other

obligations.

“We had a young and inexperienced

lineup, and I think they gave Bigfork a good battle across the

board,” Schwaderer. “I think this team has incredible room for

improvement. They all have some raw ability that needs to be

refined a little bit.”

Whitefish hosts Libby on Thursday in a

conference dual that should be exciting among the top seeded

players.

“That’s going to be a big one,”

Schwaderer said. “They are the defending conference champs and are

returning some real athletes.”

A potential showdown between Morison

and Libby’s top hitter Cree Maloney could feature two netters vying

for divisional and state titles later in the spring. The dual is

slated for 3 p.m. at Riverside Park.