After dropping two consecutive matches earlier in the week — a competitive 5-4 loss to Mount Pleasant and a 4-3 loss to Fort Madison — Fairfield’s boys tennis team responded in emphatic fashion Thursday, April 16th, sweeping Keokuk 9-0 without dropping a single match.
Keokuk came into the match short-handed, with only five available players, which resulted in Fairfield claiming the sixth singles match and third doubles match by forfeit.
Fairfield outscored Keokuk 84 games to nine across the five completed singles matches and two completed doubles matches, a dominant margin that reflected just how thoroughly the “Pioneering Trojans” controlled the afternoon.
Singles
Bowen Zhang opened things up at number one with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Caleb Mondon. Max Craver followed with a 6-0, 6-0 sweep of Marcus Huele at number two. Pranit Ruia won 6-1, 6-1 over John Helenthal at number three. Aaron Carlson won 6-0, 6-0 over Jameson Holmes at number four, and Caelan Chang closed out singles with a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Decker Derr at number five. Fairfield won the sixth singles match by forfeit.
Doubles
Pranit Ruia and Caelan Chang teamed up at number one doubles to win 6-0, 6-1 over Mondon and Huele. Aaron Carlson and Yangyi Zhong won 6-2, 6-3 over Helenthal and Derr at number two. Fairfield claimed the third doubles match by forfeit.
Head coach Lawrence Eyre was pleased with how his team performed after a difficult stretch. “Today our guys relaxed and played their best tennis so far this season,” Eyre said.
Fairfield improves to 2-2 overall and 2-2 in conference play as Keokuk falls to 0-4 overall and 0-4 in the conference. The Pioneering Trojans are scheduled to travel to Pella on Saturday, April 18th for a competitive tournament featuring host Pella, Ottumwa, Grinnell, and Boone, weather permitting.
Photo by A.J. Roe.
