The Greensburg Lady Pirates tennis squad kicked off their 2008 schedule by losing a close contest to the Connersville Lady Spartans 3-2.

Nearly every match featured close, competitive tennis. Only at No. 1 singles did one player dominate. Sara Welage easily dispatched Tiffany Tremper 6-0, 6-2 to win the match for the Pirates.

Greensburg followed suit at No. 2 singles when Taylor Hunter defeated Claire Blakley 6-4, 6-3 in a very close match. Playing baseline tennis featuring long volleys, Hunter was able to hold serve two more times than Blakely to win the match in two sets.

The exact opposite was true at No. 3 Emily Coleman spoiled freshman Laura Welage’s varsity debut by winning both sets by the same score, 6-4. This match, too, featured long baseline volleys with the more experienced Blakley prevailing by making fewer errors.

The Lady Spartans swept the doubles events to win the contest with the only three-set match of the evening coming at No. 2 doubles.

After losing the first set 0-6, Lisa Moore and Clare Pratt rebounded to beat Mandy McDivitt and Rachel Siggers 6-4 to force a third set. In the deciding set, the Connersville duo broke the Lady Pirates twice to claim the match and the contest.

Connersville’s Brooke Jobe and Marisa McClane defeated Becky Kinker and Sara Stier, 6-4, 6-3 to win at No. 1 doubles.

In reserve action, The Lady Pirates prevailed by sweeping three doubles events for the victory, although Kyra Domingo succumbed to Emily Bloom 8-2 in singles.

Senior Ann Weigel, who played her first competitive tennis match teamed with Emily Downs, fell behind early but rallied to win 8-5 in their match. The other two matches weren’t close as Chelsea Moon and Stephanie Wenning won 8-2 and newcomers Vanessa Callahan and Hannah Houk captured their match 8-1.

“I’m not unhappy,” said Greensburg tennis coach Gary Bailey, “ Being on the courts for only the fourth time, we found out some things that we’ll have to work on. The good thing is we have almost a week to do it. Our next meet is Monday, if the weather will cooperate.”