Kilgore tennis team outlasts Wills Point, Van
HIGH SCHOOL TENNIS
By MITCH LUCAS sports@kilgorenewsherald.com

Photo by Lester Murray A GOOD SATURDAY — Kilgore's Meredith Gregg (above) did very well on Saturday, as did the entire KHS tennis team, in matchups against Wills Point and Van. The Bulldogs are back in action today against Henderson.

The Kilgore High School tennis team stepped out of its District 14-4A schedule and kept in shape Saturday by facing a pair of East Texas' best Class 3A teams.

Kilgore defeated Wills Point Saturday morning, 16-3, then beat Van, 14-6, Saturday afternoon.

Girls No. 1 Haley Smith missed the morning matchup, but Callie Cunyus played very well in her place, coach Jason Maroney said, and Meredith Gregg did well filling in for Smith in doubles play against WP. Cunyus beat Lacy Hawkins, 6-1, 6-2, in her No. 1 singles matchup, then teamed with Gregg to beat Hawkins and a teammate, Drake (first name unavailable). Hawkins and Drake qualified for the state tournament last school year. Gregg and Cunyus won that match, 8-3.

The Bulldogs are back in action at home today, and it's district rival Henderson. That begins at 4 p.m. at the courts beside the KHS gymnasium.

In boys singles wins over Wills Point (no first names given), Trevar Compton beat Royman, 6-4, 6-0; Josh Bailey beat Robinson, 6-3, 6-2; Kade Bittick beat Wicks, 9-7; Eric Applegate beat McCormack, 8-1; and Trent Raby beat Keller, 5-7, 6-2, 10-4.

In boys doubles, Compton and Applegate beat Fivecoat and Royman, 8-0; Bailey and Bittick beat Robinson and Janicek, 8-5; and Josh Way and Jeremy Berryhill beat Wicks and McCormack, 8-3.

Girls singles against Wills Point, in addition to Cunyus' win, had Chelsey Cox over Brittany Howell, 6-4, 6-4; Caitlind Trowbridge over Fivecoat, 7-6 (2), 6-3; Shawna Bass over Evans, 9-7, and Naomi Worden over Timmons, 6-2, 6-4.

In girls doubles play, Trowbridge and Bass also won, 8-4, over Fivecoat and Evans, and in mixed doubles play, Worden and Raby beat McPherson and Loftion, 8-5.

Against Van, Compton beat Josh Wilgus, 2-6, 6-4, 13-11; Way beat Andrew Jaynes, 7-6 (6), 6-2; Bailey beat Ryan Parham, 7-5, 6-1; and Berryhill beat Garrett Gabriel, 8-0.

Boys doubles against Van: Compton and Applegate beat Wilgus and Parham, 7-6 (0), 6- 4, and Berryhill and Way beat White and Clark, 6-1, 6-0.

Cunyus beat Haley Verner, 6- 2, 6-0; Gregg beat Sarah Clark, 6-3, 6-1; Cox beat Jamie Hickman, 3-6, 6-4, 10-4; Trowbridge beat Leslie Chastain, 7-5, 6-3; and Bass beat Kaylie Dike, 6-2, 6-1.

In girls doubles play, Smith returned and teamed with Cunyus to beat Verner and Clark, 6-1, 6- 1; Cox and Shelby Duncan teamed to beat Hickman and Chastain, 6-4, 6-4; and Trowbridge and Bass beat Dike and Hopkins, 6-1, 6-0.

Following today's matchup with Henderson, the varsity plays Saturday morning at 8:30 at Longview. The JV, though, plays Thursday at Wills Point at 3:30.