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The Wildcats ran into a buzz saw when they traveled to St. Louis Park Thursday, April 19. The Orioles, who returned nearly all of its team from 2006 picked up an easy 7-0 win over the Wildcats.

"Many of the players were down 3-0 before they knew what happened," said Wildcat head coach Steve Otte. "Park hit with incredible pace on the ball and we just were not used to it. The team really didn't get used to the pace until the middle of the second sets, and, by then, it was too late to do anything about it.

"It is tough playing matches because we play some teams that we just "clean-up" on and the next day we play a team who just takes it to us. We should find more of an even match with Anoka," Otte added.

1 Singles Joe Knafla lost 0-6, 1-6.

2 Singles Matt Carpenter lost 1-6, 1-6.

3 Singles Kyle Hogie lost 0-6, 2-6.

4 Singles David Carlson lost 1-6, 0-6.

1 Doubles Scott Leigh/Mark Eagan lost 0-6, 1-6.

2 Doubles Jacob Spehar/Mike Zvonar lost 0-6, 4-6.

3 Doubles Matt Jorgenson/Jeremy Patterson lost 1-6, 3-6.

CL 5, Anoka 2

at CL, Monday, April 23

"This is the kind of match the team has been looking for. Things were very even on the courts, and the match was not decided until late," coach Otte commented. "Joe Knafla and David Carlson made quick work and got off of the courts to give the Wildcats an early 2-0 lead. Third doubles had their hands full and could not pull it out."

That made the score 2-1. Matt Carpenter came off the court with an easy victory to give the Wildcats a 3-1 lead. "Now is when things get real tough," Otte continued. "First and second doubles won their first sets and things were going back and fourth in their second sets. Kyle Hogie lost his first set. Second doubles dropped their second set and were now in a third set. First doubles was headed to a second set tie-breaker."

Hogie won the second set and forced a third. Anoka's second doubles gained momentum and won the point to move the overall score to 3-2. First doubles played a solid tie breaker to win that point and move Chisago to 4-2, and, shortly after that, Hogie came off of the courts with a three set victory to make the final score 5-2.

"At one point during the match I thought the match could have gone either way. The players did a nice job playing smart tennis and keeping the momentum on our side to close it out. I would gladly play Anoka again because it was great tennis to watch. Every point was a battle and meant something. A match like this really helps the players grow as a tennis team," the coach added.

1 Singles Joe Knafla won 6-2, 6-2.

2 Singles Matt Carpenter won 6-0, 6-4.

3 Singles Kyle Hogie won 6-7, 6-2, 6-4.

4 Singles David Carlson won 6-0, 6-3.

1 Doubles Scott Leigh/Mark Eagan won 6-4, 7-6.

2 Doubles Jacob Spehar/Mike Zvonar lost 6-4, 3-6, 1-6.

3 Doubles Matt Jorgenson/Jeremy Patterson lost 3-6, 1-6.

CL 1, Benilde-St. Margaret's 6

Benilde is ranked in the top 10 in the state, so Otte tried a different line-up to see what would happen. Knafla stayed at first singles and had many nice rallies on the court, but lost 2-6, 0-6. "Joe hit his best backhands of the year in this match," Otte said.

Carlson moved to second singles. "He moved the ball around nicely, but was just overpowered and lost 0-6, 1-6. David is always optimistic though. He said, after the match, 'Coach, I broke his serve,'" said the coach.

Matt Jorgenson moved from doubles to play third singles and lost 1-6, 0-6. Jeremy Patterson also moved from doubles to play fourth singles and lost 0-6, 0-6. "Matt and Jeremy were put in a tough spot for the team and fought hard. They are learning things fast and are improving their tennis games with each match." Otte commented.

The first doubles team of Scott Leigh and Mark Eagan lost 1-6, 3-6. "Benilde has a really nice doubles team and there were many nice points played during the match. Matt Carpenter and Kyle Hogie teamed up to play second doubles and won 7-6, 2-6, 6-4. These two played some really nice tennis. They lost momentum for a few games and then fought hard to get it back and win the third set. Kyle is still undefeated against Benilde," Otte said.

Jacob Spehar and Mike Zvonar moved to third doubles for this match. "They played well, but lost 0-6, 0-6. I was really impressed with all three doubles teams today. They are playing doubles by taking what they can get on the court, and they are really starting to use lobs to their advantage. I saw the best lobs of the season during this match," Otte concluded.

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