15 May 2013

Boys Tennis: Owatonna ousts Tigers from section

Ivan Rodriguez lost 3-6, 2-6 at No. 3 singles
Owatonna won all seven matches in straight sets in a 7-0 shutout win over the Tigers in the opening round of Section 1AA play Tuesday afternoon in Owatonna.

"Owatonna is a tough team and the wind and the heat didn't help our cause," Tiger coach Jack Olwell said. "Usually I tend to see those kind of conditions as an equalizer but this time I think they hurt our quality of play more than theirs."

Ivan Rodriguez put up the best Tiger fight of the day in a 3-6, 2-6 loss at the No. 3 singles position.

"Ivan was 2-3 in the second set with three or four break points against his opponent's serve to even the set," Olwell said, "but either a wind-enhanced serve or an errant return gave the point to Owatonna and snuffed out our chance to gain some momentum."

Bennett Lagro lost at first singles 2-6, 3-6, playing what Olwell termed a "smart" second set. Jon Zakoski also logged extended court time in a 1-6, 1-6 loss at fourth singles.

The loss ended the Tigers' team season. Section individual play begins next week.

Owatonna 7 Farmington 0
No. 1 singles Bennett Lagro lost 2-6, 3-6
No. 2 singles Jake Bauer lost 2-6, 2-6
No. 3 singles Ivan Rodriguez lost 3-6, 2-6
No. 4 singles Jon Zakoski lost 1-6, 1-6
No. 1 doubles Trent Kortenbusch/Austin Tremmel lost 1-6, 1-6
No. 2 doubles Austin Rau/Grady Hauswirth lost 2-6, 2-6
No. 3 doubles Jake Spindler/Drew Corraro lost 1-6, 1-6