Cascade doubles teams both place state tennis tournament

Cascade High School sent two doubles teams to the State 1A/2B/1B Tennis Tournament in Yakima on May 25, 26. The boys doubles team of Finn Johnson and Dylan Kuehni lost 6-2, 6-3 to Harrington/Wibowo of Charles Wright Academy in the first round.
In the first round of consolation, they faced Owen Bryant and Daniel Gady of Freeman. The Cascade duo rebound nicely to win 6-3, 6-3. In the next round, they beat John Hanna and Alden Bothamley of Goldendale 6-0, 6-3.
Johnson and Kuehni played Eric Owsley and Eli Holz of Tonasket in the consolation final. The Tonasket duo won the first set 6-2, but Cascade came back and won the second set 6-2. The Tigers then buckled down to win the final set 6-2 and claim fifth place. Johnson and Kuehni finished in eighth place.
The Cascade girls duo of Maddie Vandel and Megan Evans matched up against Kendra Gay and Gillian Hartman of Lakeside in the first round. Vandel and Evans battled, but lost a tough three setter, 5-7, 6-3, 6-2.
Like the boys, they were pushed into the consolation bracket. They began by beating Simran Kaur and Sitlali Cortes of Naches Valley 6-0, 6-0. Next, they played Kaylee Schow and Alley Vestal of Tenino. Cascade won 6-4, 6-0 to earn a spot in the consolation final.
Vandel and Evans met Kaitlyn Roettger and Sophie Blodgett of Granger in the consolation final. Cascade won 6-4, 7-5 to grab fifth place. Granger fell to eighth place.
“Both got difficult draws and ended up losing their first match. However, they both rebounded well and won the next two matches. Boys teams played great and by winning the next two, it assured them of playing the next day and winning a medal,” said Cascade Head Coach Mark Hassinger. “The boys played a tough Tonasket team and lost in three sets. The girls match was actually a difficult match as well but the girls played great to win in three sets. All in all a great tournament and both teams played really well.”
The Cascade boys and girls teams each earned enough points to finish in 10th place.
Ian Dunn can be reached at 548-5286 or editor@leavenworthecho.com.