Veteran PHS tennis teams start seasons at home Wednesday
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Powell High School’s boys and girls tennis teams will feature many of the same faces this year — with 14 of their 16 varsity players hitting the courts again.
“It’s basically a returning squad,” said PHS head tennis coach Joe Asay. “It was a strong team in a lot of respects and certainly with another year under their belt, I’m excited to see what these kids can do, for both the boys and the girls.”
“So I think that’s a real plus to it all — I’ve got almost all my kids coming back,” said Asay, who’s starting his second year as head coach.
Both the PHS boys’ and girls’ tennis teams will open their seasons at home on Wednesday in non-conference matches against Green River and Rock Springs.
Powell will host Green River at 9 a.m. and Rock Springs at 1 p.m. The varsity squad will play on the tennis courts at Powell High School and the junior varsity squad will play on the tennis courts at Westside Elementary School.
“It’s a non-conference event, so it’s kind of a neat opportunity on a lot of fronts — the ability to kind of see what our varsity team looks like,” Asay said.
After Wednesday’s competition, the PHS tennis players will travel to Sheridan on Friday; on Saturday, they’ll head east to face both Gillette schools — Campbell County and Thunder Basin.
Tennis teams are not divided into classes, meaning Powell plays against some teams that are generally in Class 4A.
Eight boys and eight girls play varsity: two singles players and three doubles teams. Between the two varsity squads last year, PHS lost only two girls to graduation.
The North Regional Tournament is set for Sept. 16-17 in Sheridan, with the State Tournament held in Gillette at Campbell County High School Sept. 21-22.
“I always look forward to it,” Asay said of the upcoming season. “It’s a lot of fun.”
