PIRATE BOYS TENNIS BEAT BENSON, FALL TO MINNEWASKA IN SECTION TOURNEY

The #6 seed Crookston Pirate Boys Tennis team loaded up the doubles teams and upset the #3 seed Benson Braves 4-3 in the first round of the Section 8A Boys Tennis tournament at Riverside Park in Grand Forks, North Dakota.  The win turned the tables from the lone regular-season meeting between the teams when Benson beat Crookston 4-3 on May 1 in Moorhead.

The first match completed was at third singles with Benson winning 6-1, 6-1 to take a 1-0 lead.
About 20 minutes later, Crookston picked up their first win when Reggie Winjum won his fourth singles match 6-3, 6-1 to tie the match at 1-1.  “Reggie did his usual.  He was handing in there and won decisively,” said Pirate Coach Pat Janorschke. “We always rely on him at that spot to get a win for us.”
Crookston took a 2-1 lead after the third doubles team of Xander Kuchan and George French played an outstanding match and won 6-2, 6-2. “They have been playing great together,” said Coach Janorschke. “Those guys have been doing a great job and keep getting better.”
The next match completed was a marathon two-plus hour match as the second doubles team of Evan Christensen and Nathan Kelly lost the first set, but bounced back to win the next two sets 6-2, 6-2 to give Crookston a 3-1 lead.  “That was a hard-fought match,” said Coach Janorschke. “They took a beating in the first set and came right back and ended up winning it all.  They had a lot of confidence going.”
Benson won the second singles match 6-1, 6-1 to get within a 3-2 deficit with first singles and first doubles still playing.
Crookston’s first doubles team of Jack Garmen and Mason Owens made quick work of their opponent with a dominating 6-0, 6-1 victory to give Crookston the team victory with a 4-2 lead in the match. “Mason and Jack are playing really well together,” said Coach Janorschke. “They didn’t have any problems and really played well.”
Benson won the first singles match and Crookston won the first round of the Section 8A team tournament by a 4-3 score.  “Even in our losses we really played well,” said Coach Janorschke. “The guys played well.  It was a good start to the day.  I am happy for the kids and now we have to get ready for the next round.”

SEMI-FINALS
Crookston played a great match, but came up short in a 4-3 loss to Minnewaska are in the semi-finals in a match played at University Park in Grand Forks, North Dakota.  The 4-3 loss was a big improvement from the lone regular season meeting between the two teams when Minnewaska beat Crookston 7-0 back on May 1 in Moorhead. 

Minnewaska won the first match with a win at 6-2, 6-0 victory to take a 1-0 lead in the match. Crookston evened the score with an impressive win at second doubles as Evan Christensen and Nathan Kelly won 6-3, 6-0.  “We were very picante,” said Christensen (with a smile) after the match.
Minnewaska took a 2-1 lead with a big win at third doubles.  Minnewaska won the first set 7-6 and 7-5 in the tie-breaker and then won the second set 6-2.
Crookston tied the match at 2-2 when Reggie Winjum won at third singles with a two hour match.
The next match complete was at second singles and Minnewaska came away with the victory to take a 3-2 lead in the team score.
Crookston tied the match at 3-3 when the first doubles team of Jack Garmen and Mason Owens won a hard-fought match 6-4, 6-4.
It all came down to the first singles match and unfortunately Minnewaska’s Tate Reichmann is one of the top players in the section and he won the first singles match to give Minnewaska a 4-3 victory to advance to the Section 8A Championship on Tuesday morning. 

Crookston’s team portion of the season comes to an end with a record of 4-17 with all four wins coming in the final eight matches of the season.