Othello and Ephrata go to the wire

EPHRATA — With the match tied 2-2, Othello Huskies' Raymond Rodriguez won a third-set tiebreaker 7-5 over Ephrata Tiger Clark Grigg to lift Othello to a victory in the CWAC tennis opener for both schools Tuesday.

"It was a back and forth match, with each player gaining momentum at different times," said Othello coach Steve Parris. "He stuck with it and led the boys to a win."

The teams split the singles matches, as Ephrata's Tyler Danby took down Othello's Michael Anderson 6-3, 6-0 in first singles. The Huskies had a 2-1 advantage in doubles play with convincing wins in first and third doubles.

In girls' play, Ephrata got the upper hand, sweeping singles play and picking up a win in third doubles to defeat the Lady Huskies 3-2. Second singles was again a pivotal match Tuesday, with Ephrata's Liz Conklin winning a 7-6 (7-5), 4-6, 6-2 split-sets victory over Natilee Morgan in the closest girls' match of the day.

In the top girls' singles match, Ephrata's Britney Ratigan was a 6-3, 6-1 winner over Jadee Roylance.

"Our boys' and girls' first doubles played very well today," noted Parris. "We are struggling in our singles matches and need to work on that a great deal."

"Our team did well making some adjustments," added Parris. "We were able to identify some things we need to work on, but we need time (in practice this week) to focus on those areas."

The Othello boys improved to 2-0 on the season with their win, while the Lady Huskies dropped to 1-1 on the year.

Othello 3, Ephrata 2

1st Singles - Tyler Danby (E) def. Michael Anderson 6-3, 6-0; 2nd Singles - Raymond Rodriguez (O) def. Clark Grigg 7-5, 2-6, 7-6 (7-5); 1st Doubles - T. Petersen and S. Harris (O) def. T. Harr and J. Leder 6-2, 6-2; 2nd Doubles - T. Cummings and T. Van Heusden (E) def. J. Gowan and R. Petersen 7-5, 2-6, 7-5; 3rd Doubles - D. Charles and P. Davis (O) def. J. Alvarado and N. White 6-3, 6-1.

Ephrata girls 3

Othello girls 2

1st Singles - Britney Ratigan (E) def. Jadee Roylance 6-3, 6-1; 2nd Singles - Liz Conklin (E) def. Natilee Morgan 7-6 (7-5), 4-6, 6-2; 1st Doubles - C. Garza and P. Cantu (O) def. S. Swagner and M. Schmidt 7-5, 6-0; 2nd Doubles - S. Schmidt and R. Kumai (O) def. L. Goeden and K. LaPlant 6-3, 6-2; 3rd Singles - A. Wyman and K. McDonnell (E) def. K. Garza and 6-4, 6-4.