Putnam County’s Lady Eagles faced a short-handed Laney team in tennis on Feb. 28, leading to forfeit points in what turned out to be a rout.
The Lady Eagles needed only one match to win due to the forfeit but did more than that, winning 5-0 overall. Giana Hamlin has not lost yet this season and finished 6-0.
Freshman Hannah Erickson has acclimated to the game quickly and also won her match 6-0. Doubles team Aaliyah Pennamon and Joelle Lukens won their match 7-5, 6-2.
“The team has made tremendous improvements,” head coach Christian Keiser said. “For most of the girls, tryouts were the first time they had ever played tennis. During the first couple of days of practice, I was working on drills to get the girls acclimated to holding the racket correctly and returning the ball over the net. We worked on serving a lot as well. Once the girls accomplished the basics, we started to play games with each other.”
The Lady Eagles played A.R. Johnson in Augusta on March 2 and won the match 4-1. Hamlin won her match 6-0, 6-3. Freshman Vidhi Raiyani won her match 6-2, 6-4. Hannah Erickson won her match 6-2, 6-4.
Doubles team Cadence Fox and Joelle Lukens lost a rigorous match 7-5, 7-5.
Keiser praised the young team as they continue winning. However, he added that, despite being victorious, the team still has work to do.
“The scoring process was difficult for the girls to understand at first,” he said. “Now, all of the girls are confident in their ability with playing and keeping score. We have been able to work more on specific drills, such as placing the ball and controlling where it goes. We are 2-0 on the season, and we have improved a great deal. However, we still have a long way to go.”