The Fairfield girls tennis team placed second out of four teams at the Ottumwa Girls Tennis Invitational on Saturday, August 29th, finishing with 26 points — just three points behind tournament champion Ottumwa, who won with 29. North Polk also finished with 26 points to share second place with Fairfield, while Burlington Notre Dame finished fourth with 7 points.
The day was not without its challenges. Fairfield was without their usual No. 1 player Natalie Steele, who was competing with the Fairfield volleyball team at the Grinnell Invite. Three additional players — Sriya Yammanur, Kinzley Dunkin, and Soumya Mallick — dealt with injuries throughout the day. A rain delay after lunch also made it difficult for the team to maintain momentum heading into the afternoon matches.
Despite the obstacles, Head Coach Travis Dunkin was proud of how his team competed. “Dealing with some injuries today and weather delay things didn’t quite go as planned but still took second out of four teams — just three points behind,” Dunkin said. “Still had a great day of tennis. Proud of how hard the girls fought today, never gave up. They were tested and will pay off come postseason.”
Singles Results
Ria Ross finished second at No. 1 singles, going 2-1 on the day. She defeated Paige Kramer of Burlington Notre Dame 9-0 and Hannah Mangae of North Polk 6-3 before falling to Madalynn Sertterh of Ottumwa 7-2 in the deciding match.
Yammanur finished third at No. 2 singles. She defeated Liliana Anderson of Burlington Notre Dame 8-1 before falling to Amrynn Wiseman of North Polk 5-4 and Sonya Lundgren of Ottumwa 7-2.
Mareyn Dunkin was the standout performer of the day at No. 3 singles, winning her bracket with a 3-0 record. She defeated Merideth Willson of Burlington Notre Dame 8-1, edged Sophia Cromley of North Polk 5-4, and cruised past Abigail Ellison of Ottumwa 8-1 to claim first place.
Faeven Gebremariam finished second at No. 4 singles, going 2-1. She defeated Faith Gibb of Burlington Notre Dame 9-0 and Anna Crabb of North Polk 6-3 before falling to Ana Toloza of Ottumwa 5-4 in a tight match.
Kinzley Dunkin finished third at No. 5 singles. She defeated Alen Franklin of Burlington Notre Dame 9-0 before falling to her North Polk opponent 5-4 and Harper Bradley of Ottumwa 7-2.
Mallick, who rolled her ankle during the day, finished third at No. 6 singles, falling to Macie Watson of North Polk 7-2 and Bradlie McWilliams of Ottumwa 5-4. Burlington Notre Dame did not have a sixth player for the singles flight.
Doubles Results
Ross and Mallick won first place at No. 2 doubles, going 3-0. They defeated Burlington Notre Dame’s Gibb and Willson 9-0, edged North Polk’s Cromley and Watson 5-4, and defeated Ottumwa’s Ellison and Toloza 6-3.
Yammanur and Gebremariam finished third at No. 1 doubles. They defeated Burlington Notre Dame’s Anderson and Kramer 7-2 before falling to North Polk’s Mangae and Wiseman 7-2 and Ottumwa’s Sertterh and Lundgren 7-2.
The Dunkin Duo of Mareyn and Kinzley claimed first place at No. 3 doubles, defeating North Polk’s Crabb and Kirsten Lea 7-2 and Ottumwa’s Harper Bradley and Naw Clay 7-2.
