By Denis House
Sports Editor
LAUREL COUNTY, Ky. —
CORBIN—The South Laurel Lady Cardinals traveled to Corbin Monday night and fell to the host Lady Redhounds, 7-2, in girls tennis.
“This match didn’t have the outcome I had hoped for,” coach Cindy Taylor said. “The girls dug themselves a hole and just couldn’t recover from it. Hopefully, with some hard work we can come out strong next time.”
Neha Rao picked up the lone singles win for South Laurel, beating Sydney Ledington, 6-4, 6-2. She also teamed with Kaylyn Collette to win in doubles over Ledington and Catherine Crawford, 8-6.
The South Laurel Cardinals split with Whitley County in tennis action March 22, with the girls winning, 8-2, while the boys fell, 9-0.
“The boys’ matches were much closer than the score indicated,” South Laurel boys’ coach Larry Finley said. “There were some really close matches with the only difference being a shot here or there. Whitley County does have a strong team from top to bottom and this match provided us with some really good experience. We are getting better and will be right where we need to be by regional time.”
In girls’ action, the Lady Cardinals dominated, winning all six singles matches and two of three in doubles.
“I was very impressed with the way the girls played in their first match,” Taylor said. “They came out and played hard from the beginning until the end. I think we are going to have a very good season.”
In singles, Neha Rao beat Kelsey Bryant, 6-1, 6-0, while Kaylyn Collette downed Kori Sears, 6-1, 7-5. Kati Kilburn, Emily Turner, Abbi Rush and Mackenzie Jones all won their singles matches.
The Lady Cardinals played host to Williamsburg on Tuesday. Both teams will host Whitley County Thursday.
Corbin 7, South Laurel 2 (girls)
Singles
Neha Rao (SL) d. Sydney Ledington (C), 6-4, 6-2; Catherine Crawford (C) d. Kaylyn Collette (SL), 6-4, 6-3; Emma Kate Carloftis (C) d. Katie Kilburn (SL), 8-2; Elizabeth Jackson (C) d. Emily Turner (SL), 8-0; Makayla Beecham (C) d. Abbi Rush (SL), 8-3; Ellie Jane Carloftis (C) d. Mackenzie Jones (SL), 8-0.
Doubles
Emma Kate Carloftis/Elizabeth Jackson (C) d. Emily Turner/Katie Kilburn (SL), 6-0, 6-3; Neha Rao/Kaylyn Collette (SL) d. Sydney Ledington/Catherine Crawford (C), 8-6; Julie Crawford/Shelby Phillips (C) d. Abbi Rush/Mackenzie Jones (SL), 8-1.
South Laurel 8, Whitley County 1 (girls)
Singles
Neha Rao (SL) d. Kelsey Bryant (WC), 6-1, 6-0; Kaylyn Collette (SL) d. Kori Sears (WC), 6-1, 7-5; Kati Kilburn (SL) d. Amanda Moses (WC), 8-4; Emily Turner (SL) d. Emily Rose (WC), 8-2; Abbi Rush (SL) d. Deseree Sturgill (WC), 8-2; Mackenzie Jones (SL) d. Anna Grace Zehr (WC), 8-4.
Doubles
Emily Turner/Kati Kilburn (SL) d. Kelsey Bryant/Amanda Moses (WC), 6-4, 7-5; Neha Rao/Kaylyn Collette (SL) d. Kori Sears/Emily Rose (WC), 8-1; Deseree Sturgill/Anna Grace Zehr (WC) d. Mackenzie Jones/Abbi Rush (SL), 8-4.
Whitley County 9, South Laurel 0 (boys)
Singles
Danny Butcher (WC) d. Austin Phelps (SL), 6-0, 6-0; Pete Comparoni (WC) d. Justin Phelps (SL), 6-0, 6-2; Chris Tan (WC) d. Jacob Hubbuch (SL), 8-0; Matthew Douglas (WC) d. Tyler Kirby (SL), 8-2; Lucas Moses (WC) d. Ben McDonald (WC), 8-3; Connor Shelby (WC) d. Jon Hampton (SL), 8-3.
Doubles
Chris Tan/Matthew Douglas (WC) d. Austin Phelps/Tyler Kirby (SL), 6-0, 6-3; Lucas Moses/Connor Shelley (WC) d. Ben McDonald/Justin Phelps (SL), 9-7; Ethan Sweet/Dylan Thomas (WC) d. Plinio Tuta/Jacob Hubbuch (SL), 8-3.
