TERRE HAUTE —
Jeff Farmer was concerned Thursday that his Terre Haute North girls high school tennis team might be fatigued as it entered its eighth match in nine days.
Bill Blankenbaker of host Terre Haute South could only wish his team had that problem, after the Patriots had won the crosstown rivalry match 4-1 in surprisingly one-sided fashion.
The No. 1 singles match was a beautifully played one, with South senior Maddie Kesler earning her team’s only point by coming from behind to beat North junior Anna Potter; another North junior, Morgan Cook, has the best record in town so far and emphasized that by being the first player off the court in a 6-0, 6-2 victory.
Other than those three players, however, varsity experience is hard to come by on either team. The outcome, then, was going to come down to which newcomers adapted best to the rivalry’s atmosphere and big crowd, and on Thursday it was North’s new players who rose to the occasion.
Particularly impressive to Farmer in that regard were freshmen Olivia Caldwell and Caroline Potter, who won the last four games of their first set and the last three of their second for a 6-3, 6-4 doubles win.
“The freshmen at No. 1 doubles were down in both sets and turned it around,” the first-year coach said afterward. “They dug in and made some nice adjustments.”
Cook improved to 7-1 for the season and at least twice has earned victories without giving up a single game.
“She finds a way to win,” Farmer said. “She’s a very smart player, she works her opponent around the court and she thinks. She also plays every point like it’s the last point of the match.”
Told that her performance so far this spring was making the game look easy, Cook answered, “I’ve worked really hard — but it’s never easy.”
She’s not the only one working hard either, Cook noted, which is why the Patriots’ 6-2 start with an inexperienced roster doesn’t exactly surprise her.
“I’m really proud of my team,” she said. “It’s exciting to look around and see everyone’s score.”
Those glances were exciting for all the North partisans early Thursday. The Patriots gave up just three games in the first sets of the third singles matches, and a pair of doubles comebacks made it a 5-0 first-set sweep. Most of the Braves fared better in second sets, but not not enough to threaten their visitors, who got the match’s first four points.
“I didn’t know what to expect,” Farmer said, “but everybody played 110 percent. I couldn’t be happier with the way we played, from top to bottom.”
“I really thought the matches would be a lot closer, and hopefully they will be next time,” Blankenbaker said. “I’m really proud of Maddie Kesler. I really didn’t get to see much of her match, but I know Anna [Potter] came out and played really fantastic; Maddie must have played like a true senior to come back like that.”
Kesler isn’t South’s only senior, but she’s certainly the only Brave who has been a varsity player for four years.
“We have a lot of players with no North-South experience,” Blankenbaker pointed out, “and we’d only played three matches. There are a lot of new faces on both teams.”
The Braves coach is hoping an upcoming flurry of matches for his team will bring about some improvement.
“I’m not satisfied with the way we played,” Blankenbaker concluded, “but I think it will get better.”
Terre Haute North 4, Terre Haute South 1
Singles — Maddie Kesler (THS) def. Anna Potter 2-6, 6-4, 6-2; Laura Mascari (THN) def. Nicole Howe 6-1, 6-3; Morgan Cook (THN) def. Shivani Purohit 6-0, 6-2.
Doubles — Olivia Caldwell-Caroline Potter (THN) def. Miranda Camp-Tabitha Fagg 6-3, 6-4; Lynsey Stoick-Kim Zigler (THN) def. Jordan Davis-Madison Manning 6-4, 6-1.
JV — South 11, North 5.
Next — North (6-2) plays second-ranked Evansville Memorial on Monday at Vincennes. South (2-2) plays Saturday at Lawrence Central, where the Braves will also meet Penn and Vincennes Lincoln.
High School
North tennis takes city title with 4-1 win over South
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West Vigo advances to sectional championship with walk-off win in ninth
High school baseball sectional games between West Vigo and Edgewood have had a tendency to be unpredictable over the years, but the Vikings and Mustangs outdid themselves in that area Thursday evening — and Thursday night.
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BOYS TRACK REGIONAL: North gets three winners, South two at Evansville
Terre Haute North had three winners, Terre Haute South two, and the Patriots and Braves finished second and third respectively at the Evansville Regional for boys track on Thursday at Evansville Central.
Hurdlers Cam Stewart and Cole Seward and discus thrower Lee Davis were the winners for North, enabling the Patriots to finish with 60 points to 59 for the Braves. -
PREP ROUNDUP: Martinsville adavances in Class 4A THS Sectional
Martinsville slipped past Mooresville 4-2 in the only game played Thursday in the Class 4A Terre Haute South Sectional for high school baseball.
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South Vermillion pitches team to sectional title, wins for her dad
South Vermillion snapped one streak and extended another Thursday night to win Class 3A Sectional 28 8-5 over Brown County at Edgewood High School.
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Green's grand slam helps Shakamak to sectional win
Patrick Green pitched the first four innings for his seventh win of the year and made things easier for himself with a second-inning grand slam as Shakamak opened the Class A Shakamak Sectional with a 9-1 win over Clay City on Thursday.
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Rockville, Attica winners in Class A sectional baseball action
Host Rockville defeated North Vermillion and Attica came from behind to overhaul defending champion Turkey Run on Thursday in the first round of the Class A Rockville Sectional for high school baseball.
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North baseball pulls away from South in sectional opener
In high school baseball little things mean a lot, and the crack in the door doesn’t have to be open very wide.
Terre Haute North burst through that crack in the bottom of the second inning Wednesday evening at Terre Haute South, scoring seven two-out runs and going on to a surprisingly easy 12-2 victory over the host Braves. -
Blank, Mundy named McMillan Award winners
Posing side-by-side for photos following Terre Haute North High School’s Senior Awards ceremony, seniors Calvin Blank and Chanli Mundy couldn’t look more different.
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West Vigo baseball advances with 10-0 win behind Stewart's two-hitter
West Vigo got off to a good start in Class 3A high school sectional baseball action Wednesday evening at Dick Ballinger Field.
The Vikings scored four runs in the first inning of the first sectional game and went on to defeat Brown County 10-0 in five innings with Kevin Stewart hurling a two-hitter. -
Terre Haute South tennis claims regional crown
It was a lot tougher than some thought it would be, but the Terre Haute South girls tennis team won the Greencastle regional for the second year in a row Wednesday evening at DePauw University Tennis and Track Center.
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Big group of Wabash Valley boys head to Evansville looking for state berths
The top four finishers in each event from last week’s Terre Haute North, Evansville Central, Jasper and Princeton boys high school track and field sectionals will converge on Evansville Central today for regional competition.
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West Vigo comes up short against 19-9 Brown County softball
West Vigo got off to a good start but Brown County finished better in Class 3A high school softball sectional semifinal action Tuesday night at Edgewood.
The Eagles bested the Vikings 7-5 and will meet South Vermillion, a 12-7 winner over Owen Valley, for the sectional championship on Thursday starting at 6 p.m.
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Valley baseball teams have been keeping busy heading into sectionals
When high school baseball sectionals begin around the Wabash Valley today, one complaint that’s not expected to be heard from any coach is that his team has had too much time off.
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Northview powers way past Terre Haute South in sectional semifinal
Northview unleashed power rarely seen in high school girls softball Tuesday night to eliminate Terre Haute South 8-1 in the Class 4A Sectional at Martinsville High School.
The Knights hit three home runs in an eight-run third inning to reach the championship game. -
Terre Haute North dominates field at regional
Keirra Porter took first place in two individual events and helped Terre Haute North win one of its relays as the Patriots captured the Evansville Central Regional team championship in girls high school track and field Tuesday night.
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PREP ROUNDUP: South tennis cruises into regional final
Terre Haute South didn’t lose a game en route to blanking Seeger 5-0 in girls high school tennis Tuesday to advance to today’s championship match against Crawfordsville in the Greencastle Regional.
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Terry enjoys strong year with Wildcats, and still enjoying suiting up to play
South Vermillion’s Tim Terry is the longest tenured coach in Wabash Valley high school baseball as his Wildcats are set to begin sectional play Thursday against Owen Valley.
But on the Yankees, a 35-and-over team in the Terre Haute Men’s Senior Baseball League, Terry is “just a youngster” if you ask Larry Roesch, his 68-year-old teammate on the Volkers Group Yankees. -
West Vigo softball holds off nemesis Edgewood in softball sectional
Ice cream was enough of a reward Monday night after the West Vigo Vikings beat eight-time defending champion Edgewood 6-2 in extra innings in the opening game of the Class 3A softball sectional at Edgewood High School. But that’s not what Vikings want.
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PREP ROUNDUP: Shakamak's Green hits two homers in win over West Vigo
Shakamak improved to 22-3 on the season behind a complete-game effort from Brett Yeryar, and Patrick Green hit two solo home runs in a high school baseball game Monday.
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Terre Haute North offense unable to get going in loss to Mooresville
Jack Kirchner chose to give credit Monday night to Mooresville pitcher Taylor Chitwood, not to the Greg Maddux-size strike zone she seemed to enjoy.
But if there were no excuses forthcoming from Kirchner and his Terre Haute North High School softball team, it wouldn’t have been hard to find a spectator or two to come up with extenuating circumstances about the Patriots’ 4-1 loss at the Class 4A Martinsville Sectional. -
Terre Haute North looking strong going into girls track regional
Terre Haute North might need an off night for anyone to catch them in the girls track regional at Evansville Central.
The Patriots are as well-rounded as they’ve ever been, and two relay teams are state contenders with times ranking No. 2 in Indiana among times recorded all spring.
Terre Haute South, Northview and Sullivan have athletes among the contenders in multiple events as well. -
South tennis ready for potential challenge in regional
Terre Haute South and Northview take respective records of 10-5 and 11-5 into the Greencastle Regional today.
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Softball sectionals up for grabs
All three Vigo County high schools and Northview appear to have a realistic chance of winning sectional championships in softball this week.
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Terre Haute South, Northview vie for tennis regional title
Terre Haute South and Northview take respective records of 10-5 and 11-5 into the Greencastle Regional today.
Coach Bill Blankenbaker’s Braves will play Seeger at 4:30 p.m., while coach Emily Goff’s Knights will take on Crawfordsville about 6 p.m. -
Vikings win in extra innings at Rockville
West Vigo scored six runs in its first two innings Saturday, then needed a ninth-inning single by Lucas Fagg to escape with a 7-6 extra-inning win in nonconference high school baseball at Rockville.
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TH South beats Northview in Big Four makeup baseball game
Terre Haute South wrapped up a share of the MIC baseball title and finished up the Big Four Classic with an 8-1 victory over Northview in less than 24 hours on Saturday morning.
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Olds pitches South to share of MIC baseball title
Friday night, winning the second game 5-0 and earning a share of the Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference high school baseball title.
Damon Olds was dominant on the mound for the Braves, striking out 14 and walking just one while pitching a three-hit shutout. -
South wins first half of doubleheader against Lawrence North
Host Terre Haute South kept its Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference high school baseball title hopes alive — and clinched no worse than second place in the process — by downing Lawrence North 4-1 in the first game of a doubleheader Friday night.
The second game, which started after Senior Night festivities between games, ended past the Tribune-Star deadline. -
PREP ROUNDUP: Calleja pitches West Vigo past South Vermillion
Brandon Calleja had 13 strikeouts to lead West Vigo to a 5-1 victory against South Vermillion in high school baseball Friday.
Brandon Behringer went 2 for 4 with two RBI for the Vikings, who secured second place in the Western Indiana Conference.
Kaden Lawson had double for South Vermillion (15-7), which finished 4-2 in the WIC. -
Seibert returns from injury to win three events as Braves win sectional crown
His baseball equivalent might be Rick Sutcliffe of the 1984 Chicago Cubs.
When Tyler Seibert returned to the Terre Haute South track and field lineup Thursday for sectional action at Terre Haute North, it was like the midseason trade the Cubs made for Sutcliffe that earned them a playoff spot. - More High School Headlines
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