The Iola tennis team ended its season on Saturday with the number one doubles team of Macayla Bycroft and Gabby Richards falling just one place short of advancing at the 4A regional tournament at Parsons.
The duo opened up on Friday with a 2-1 win over MacKenzie Karr and Mika Karr of Winfield (3-6, 6-1, 11-9) before falling 0-2 (6-1, 6-0) to 5A defending state champion Kelsie Burr and Chassidy Weather of Ark City.
“I am so proud of them,” head coach Jenn Bycroft said. “Throughout the whole weekend, I kept telling them three things: Communication, mental toughness, and smart playing. They did all of those well. What I loved to see in these two is they had fun while playing and became friends even in this short amount of time. They really encouraged each other.
“This year is a little tougher for me. I’m not just Macayla’s coach, but more importantly her mom, so seeing her season end as a senior was pretty emotional for me. I’m so thankful I’ve had this time with her.”
The Fillies returned to Parsons on Saturday needing a win to secure a trip to state.
They took on Beth Walker and Madison McChristian of Ark City and fell 0-2 (6-1, 6-3).
They ended up placing seventh overall which was a place higher than they were seeded (eighth). The top six teams advanced to state.
“These two were the surprise team,” Bycroft said. “Macayla decided to give tennis a try her sophomore year. Gabby has only been playing tennis for three months. I considered pairing them up at the beginning of the season but wanted to start Gabby out at the No. 2 doubles spot to build her skills and confidence a little. She has improved so much just this season, already being a naturally talented athlete, and Macayla has come a long way since she started playing three years ago, really perfecting her short cross court shot. This duo played together for the first time at our matches in Pittsburg two weeks in a row.”
Sophomore number one singles player Allie Utley had a tough slate on Friday, falling 0-2 to Ark City’s Josie Hoag (6-0, 6-4).
Utley started the season on junior varsity and worked her way up to the top singles spot. She ends the season with a 20-4 record.
“Allie had a very strong, successful season,” Bycroft said. “I saw a lot of improvement over the last few weeks and more confidence as a player. I moved her up to the No. 1 spot before our last two matches of the season. Allie and I talked afterward, and I told her, ‘what you have ahead of you is by far better than what you are leaving behind’ and to keep working toward her goal. She’s a great player with a lot of potential. I am proud of the season that she’s had.”
Senior number two singles player Erin Klubek played one play-in match and won before being able to enter the regular bracket.
Klubek beat Coffeyville’s Sara Vargas in a nine-game pro set, winning 9-8 in a tie-break.
The senior then faced Ally Hicks of Parsons and fell 0-2 (6-0, 6-0), eliminating her from the tournament.
“She is one of two seniors that the team will be without next year,” Bycroft said. “Erin and Macayla have played doubles together since their sophomore year, but I switched Erin to singles when I moved the lineup around before our last two matches of the season. Though that was a hard transition at times, I felt that Erin made that switch well and worked really hard. Her shots got better, and she hustled after every ball. Erin seems to have enjoyed the game and I wish her the best as she moves on and plans for her college years.”
The number two doubles team of junior Jennifer Tidd and sophomore Carlie Payne fell 2-0 to Qwynn Marquez and Addison Julian of Independence (6-0, 6-0). Independence placed first in the SEK league and Marquez and Julian went on to place fourth at regionals and advance to state.
“For most of the season, Jennifer played number one singles and though she’s an extremely coachable kid, I knew she wasn’t real comfortable at this position,” Bycroft said. “She didn’t win any matches at the singles spot, but as soon as I transitioned her at number two doubles with Carlie, they got some good wins and I think that boosted Jen’s confidence a bit. She’s just a junior so she’ll be back next year and with Carlie only being a sophomore, she has a lot of good things to look forward to in tennis. They both had great attitudes even with the loss.”
The Fillies end a successful season highlighted by multiple top-three finishes and a first-place finish at their home meet. They return all but two seniors next season and hope to continue to build throughout the offseason.
“Our team grew through some adversity this year and we truly bonded as a team,” Bycroft said. “I’m thankful I had this year to coach all of them. We had a great season and it’s been awhile since we’ve been this close to anyone advancing to state. Macayla, Gabby, and Allie have all had some lessons from Eric Sparks, an IHS tennis alum, and Carlie has taken some lessons from an instructor in Joplin. That’s what it takes. I can coach them in a short 8 week season, and try to help them as best as I can, but to be better, they have to put in some extra time offseason. It paid off this year.”
Fillies just shy of qualifying for state
