Tennis team wraps up regular season

The Outlaws boys tennis squad played at Mountain View on Monday, May 3, and two days later hosted part of Summit’s JV team.

On Monday, the Outlaws played without No. 1 singles player Nate Weber. Sisters had three players rotate through singles and doubles sets against the lower half of Mountain View’s varsity players.

Dexter Payne came back after losing in a doubles set, and defeated his opponent 8-4 in a singles pro set.

Two days later, the Outlaws had four players available to play against Summit JV. Weber earned an easy 8-4 win over Noah Wood. Payne dug deep to get an 8-6 win over Wyatt Chance. Dexter finished with an ace right on the center line, which earned him a big cheer from spectators, which included the girls team and cheer squad who were there to support the boys in their final match.

Click told The Nugget that Chance was a much more experienced player, but Payne, a newcomer to tennis, hustled around the court and kept the ball in play long enough to win points.

Prior to the match, the Outlaws honored senior, Nate Weber.

“Nate’s had a stellar four-year career that includes a 32-9 singles record,” said Click. “All of his losses have come to players who have qualified for state at different classifications. Other than his ability and work ethic, what I admire most about Nate is his integrity. I’ve watched him play at the highest level of competition and never once miss a call. We make our own calls in tennis, and there is an honor system. There are some bad calls every once in a while. It’s easy to fudge a little bit. But never Nate. He always made the right call, and that shows his character.”

Senior KJ Sweet was unavailable for the last match, but was also recognized and honored.

Click said, “KJ is also a four-year player. When he started as a freshman he hadn’t played tennis or any sport, so it took a lot of guts to take on that challenge. KJ has improved match-to-match and year-to-year. He lettered all four years, and he earned a spot in his first district tournament this season, but due to personal circumstances he will not be able to participate.”

The Outlaws will participate in the district tournament which will be held at Black Butte Ranch, Monday, May 10, and Thursday and Friday, May 13-14. Weber will compete as the Outlaws No. 2 seed in singles, Matthew Riehle will compete in singles play and Payne and Barry will pair up as a doubles team.