WORTHINGTON -- The Worthington Trojans got a double-dose of good news from Jenny Mammen Tuesday.
First, she was cleared to play after an exam of her injured heel revealed a bruise -- not a serious injury. Second, she came back to the courts at Minnesota West and, teaming with Leigh Van Hove, combined for a 6-1, 7-5 victory over Martin County West's Krista Weiss and Shannon McConnell.
The victory, however, was the lone one on the day for the Trojans, who fell to MCW 6-1.
Mammen's bruised heel did make it tougher for her to move on the court in her match, but it was not able to keep her and Van Hove from getting out to a good start. In the second set, however, the MCW duo made it tighter by playing more accurate tennis.
"They were placing their shots a little bit more, just finding our weaknesses," Mammen said. "We were able to communicate a little bit better and, with our placement, pull through."
ADVERTISEMENT
The duo also showed a willingness to play aggressive in their match, which has led to solid results.
"Our third doubles is playing well. I feel we're very consistent at third doubles," WHS head coach Mike Marquardt said. "We can pretty much, in my opinion, play with the best of them."
The best match of the day, though, came at No. 3 singles, where WHS's Raquel Leinen took on Toni Pribyl. Leinen feel behind quickly in the first set, 5-2, before rallying back with three straight games -- including a break of serve in the ninth game of the set -- to pull even at 5-all.
Leinen, who served well and has picked up her forehand play, had her best play come at 15-30 on Pribyl's serve. Pribyl sent a shot toward the near left corner which Leinen was able to run down and hit blindly over her head. The shot barely cleared the net and landed in play, but Pribyl's shot sailed wide, and Leinen broke her serve one point later.
Pribyl then broke Leinen's serve two games later to win the set, and later won four straight games in the final set to close out the match.
MCW head coach Ross Bettin, while happy his player won the match, came away impressed by what he saw from Worthington's No. 3 singles player.
"(Leinen) really played a nice, consistent match. Her groundstrokes really picked up as the match progressed, and I think that frustrated Toni a little bit."
In other singles action, Sarah Manzey broke Sameera Nalla six times in eight changes to win her No. 4 match, 6-0, 6-2, and Megan Biehn topped Janna Morrow at No. 1, 6-0, 6-4.
ADVERTISEMENT
In doubles, Ashley Hansen and Vreni Striggow topped Jessica Vuong and Erin Schutte, 7-5, 6-1, and the duo of Emily Schlenk and Jenna Kuehl topped Angela Bui and Laura Johnson, 6-4, 6-2.
Worthington hosts Marshall Thursday.
No. 1 singles: Megan Biehn (MCW) def. Janna Morrow 6-0, 6-4. No. 2: Cailey Grupe (MCW) def. Kaylee Williamson 6-0, 6-0. No. 3: Toni Pribyl (MCW) def. Raquel Leinen 7-5, 6-1. No. 4: Sarah Manzey (MCW) def. Sameera Nalla 6-0, 6-2.
No. 1 doubles: Ashley Hansen/Vreni Striggow (MCW) def. Jessica Vuong/Erin Schutte 7-5, 6-1. No. 2: Emily Schlenk/Jenna Kuehl (MCW) def. Angela Bui/Laura Johnson 6-4, 6-2. No. 3: Leigh Van Hove/Jenny Mammen (WHS) def. Krista Weiss/Shannon McConnell 6-1. 7-5.
