Tia Wurzrainer is teaming with fellow Wolf sophomore Avalon Renninger to form a potent doubles duo. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
Tennis is a tricky game.
They record the team score, yet individual development is the primary objective.
Coupeville High School girls tennis coach Ken Stange has been hanging around the courts for most of his life, and has developed a nice Zen attitude about the whole thing.
So, while his Wolf squad fell to 0-3 on the season after taking a 4-1 non-conference loss at South Whidbey Friday, he can be at peace, seeing each of his netters develop their own story arc at their own pace.
Coupeville will have a tough time putting together a string of team wins, with seven matches against 2A schools, several others against tough 1A rivals like South Whidbey, and a Wolf lineup still very much in flux.
Friday’s match, while it ended in a team loss, had its positives, though, especially in doubles.
Stange’s top duo, seniors Payton Aparicio and Sage Renninger, bounced back after a narrow loss to a Sequim tandem, pulling out an epic three-set win in Langley.
“Sage and Payton really figured it out today,” Stange said. “South Whidbey had a tough duo.
“It took a while for them to find the groove, but once they did, it was lights out for SW.”
Coupeville’s #2 duo, sophomores Avalon Renninger and Tia Wurzrainer, have only played three matches together, but their coach already sees a bright future for his young netters.
“Avalon and Tia continue to grow,” Stange said. “They may have lost, but I see them evolving into one entity.
“They remind me of my 1’s, in a way.”
The final varsity doubles match presented Coupeville’s coach with a bit of a quandry.
While he was fully in support of his own players — seniors Kameryn St Onge and Maggie Crimmins — one of the Falcon rivals happened to be Oliana Stange.
The SWHS sophomore was making her varsity debut, and she and her partner pulled out a win as Ken Stange carefully juggled two roles, that of an aggressive coach and a justifiably-beaming father.
“Between sets, I told Kam and Maggie to hit it to the less-experienced player. That was O,” chess-master Ken Stange admitted with a small smile. “I told my girls that she’d either wilt or rise up.
“O stepped up. I was quite proud.”
After another clash with a 2A school, this time Kingston, next Tuesday, Mar. 20, Coupeville begins its run at a fourth-straight Olympic League crown when it hosts Klahowya Thursday, Mar. 22
Complete Friday results:
Varsity:
1st Singles — Claire Mietus lost to Farriss Jokinen 6-2, 6-1
2nd Singles — Genna Wright lost to Ashley Ricketts 6-0, 6-0
1st Doubles — Payton Aparicio/Sage Renninger beat Mary Zisette/Ainsley Nelson 4-6, 6-1, 6-0
2nd Doubles — Avalon Renninger/Tia Wurzrainer lost to Robynn Maciel/Alison Papritz 6-4, 6-2
3rd Doubles — Kameryn St Onge/Maggie Crimmins lost to Ally Lynch/Oliana Stange 6-2, 6-2
JV:
4th Doubles — Jillian Mayne/Zara Bradley lost to Annika/Chloe 6-1
5th Doubles — Heather Nastali/Nanci Melendrez beat Capri/Amara 6-1
Coupeville Sports 
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