Go to link below for the 2014 FVA standings & results & All Conference selections
www.fvasports.net/page/show/1251330-girls-tennis
Varsity
JV
2014 All Conference
Nicole Feltz 12 1st Team #1 Singles
Toni Winkler 10 Honorable Mention #4 Singles
Feltz falls in second round at state
MADISON – After a first-round win, Fond du Lac senior Nicole Feltz saw her outstanding high school girls tennis career come to an end with a second-round loss at the WIAA Division 1 state individual tennis meet Thursday afternoon at Nielsen Tennis Stadium on the campus of UW-Madison.
Feltz picked up a 6-0, 6-1 win over Waukesha South’s Rina Niehoff before falling to Neenah’s Jenny Price 6-4, 6-3 in the second round.
Fond du Lac coach Heather DeGroot said Feltz played very well against a worthy opponent in Niehoff in the first round.
“Her first match went very well,” DeGroot said. “Early on in the second set, the (opposing) girl try to extend out points and keep herself in it. After one or two tight games, Nicole figured it out and finished out the set. She played very well in the first match. She definitely had to beat the girl, she wasn’t just going to give it up.”
However, in her second match of the day, against FVA rival Price, Feltz (27-3) was hindered by a turf toe injury that had sprung up in sectionals. Price (19-8), whom Feltz had beaten multiple times this season prior to Thursday’s match, took advantage and knocked off the No. 13 seed.
“It was a very close match. It’s always close with Jenny,” DeGroot said. “She sticks in there and doesn’t give up on anything. Nicole went into the tournament with turf toe and it started to spread more pain into her foot. She really wasn’t able to get to balls and mentally it’s hard when you’re used to running a certain way and you’re getting to a certain ball and then you’re not able to do that.”
The loss brings an end to Feltz’s remarkable career — one in which she advanced to four state tournaments. DeGroot saw her star athlete improve in a variety of ways since her freshman season and was happy to have been a part of Feltz’s career.
“The last part of her tennis game really came together (this season),” DeGroot said. “The last part that Nicole needed was that mental game and the mental toughness piece. She really did that. I know it was tough for her to stay in there in that second set (against Price) and continue to play, but she did that. That made us really proud of her for trying to battle through it.
“Each part of her game came a little bit every year and she really has the whole package. I had a blast coaching her for these four years.
Fondy’s Feltz, Hierl/Bahr advance to sectionals
BEAVER DAM – Fond du Lac’s top singles player Nicole Feltz and the No. 1 doubles team of Annie Hierl and Maddie Bahr advanced to the WIAA Division 1 sectional tournament Tuesday morning after winning their matches in the sub-sectional.
The doubles team, which was seeded five, upset Slinger, who was seeded fourth. The pair came out to a strong start and never looked back, winning 6-1, 6-1. “They were playing a very strong Slinger team, who had a 16-5 record,” Fondy head coach Heather Schuetz said. “We played phenomenally. This is one of the best matches in their history together, they played clean with no mistakes and really came out and scared Slinger right away.”
Like the doubles team, Fondy’s Feltz cruised to a win in her only match, advancing her to Thursday’s sectionals, which will be held at the Fox Cities Racquet Club in Appleton at 9 a.m. Feltz, the two seed, picked up a 6-1, 6-4 win over West Bend West’s Caitlyn Moore. “She played well, she came out and just played well,” Schuetz said of Feltz. “She always comes to play and she knew she only had one match so she had to save up her energy for Thursday.”
In the sub-sectional tournament, the top flight of both singles and doubles play only one match. With a win, the winner advances to sectionals where they will play three matches. For any other flight, with a win, you will play another match. But if you lose that second match, you won’t advance.
Fond du Lac finished tied for third out of eight teams, finishing with 12 points with Slinger. West Bend East led with 22 points followed by Hartford Union with 16.
At No. 2 singles, Fondy’s Melina Zompoles won her first match 6-0, 6-0, but lost her second match 6-0, 6-1 to West Bend East’s Melina Schartz. Lizabee Browy also won her first match at No. 3 singles for Fondy, but lost 6-4, 6-1 in the next match.
At No. 4 singles, Toni Winkler lost 6-2, 6-4 in the first match to Slinger’s Katarina Volkmann.
At No. 2 doubles, Kelli Cole and Hannah Grahl won 6-3, 6-3 in the opening match against Beaver Dam. But the duo would fall 6-0, 6-4 to Hartford in the final match. Then at No. 3 doubles, Lydia Dean and Kendalynn Acheson played Plymouth in the first round, winning 6-0, 6-0, but lost 6-4, 7-5 in the next match against Slinger.
Feltz crowned champ, Fondy 3rd
KAUKAUNA – Led by Nicole Feltz’ first place finish, the Fond du Lac girls tennis team finished third in the Fox Valley Association Meet. The Cardinals, who finished fourth overall in dual meets this season, used a strong showing to finish third in the tournament to give them a third place finish overall.
Feltz went 3-0 Thursday at No. 1 singles, defeating Neenah’s Jenny Price in the championship match. Feltz won 6-3, 6-7 (5) and 10-4. Feltz won her opener against Appleton East’s Andrea Krahenbuhl and then picked up a win against Oshkosh North’s Savannah Prehn, 6-1, 6-1. “She played great, anytime you play Jenny Price from Neenah, you’ll have to work for your points,” Fondy head coach Heather Schuetz said. “She can be offensive, she plays really good defense and Nicole had to be really patient and wait for opportunities. She really had to use the mental side of her game today and won a really good tiebreaker set.” In that third tiebreaker set, Feltz and Price were tied 4-4 but Feltz went on to win the rest.
The Cardinals got a fourth place finish out of No. 4 singles player Toni Winkler, as she went 1-2. Winkler won the first match 4-6, 6-4 and 10-6 over Clair Gorges of Kimberly, but then lost the next match to fall to the third place game. There, she lost 6-2, 6-2 to Oshkosh North’s Olivia Seeley. Adding fifth place finishes was No. 3 singles player Lizabee Browy and the No. 3 doubles team of Lydia Dean and Kendalynn Acheson. Browy lost her first game, but won her next two, taking the consolation bracket. She won her fifth place match 6-2, 6-3 over Appleton East’s Lexie Shannon. The same was said for Dean and Acheson, who fell in their first match but went on to win the next two to win the consolation bracket. The pair won 6-3, 7-5 over Appleton North. Finishing sixth was No. 2 singles player Melina Zompolas and the No. 1 and 2 doubles teams of Annie Hierl/Maddie Bahr and Kelli Cole/Hannah Grahl.
“The day started off interesting, the first match didn’t start until 9:30 a.m. and we got there at 7:30 a.m. so it was a long morning,” Schuetz said. “But our No. 3 doubles went for consolation and Toni finished just as she was seeded, she played well but lost in a tough match against tough player. Overall it was a decent day.”
Fond du Lac finished with 38 total team points and Neenah won the tournament with 66 total points. Oshkosh West was second with 57 points.
Fond du Lac edges Kohler
Fond du Lac 4, Kohler 3: The Fond du Lac girls tennis team edged Kohler in a nonconference dual meet.
No. 1 Nicole Feltz and No. 4 Toni Winkler picked up wins in singles action for the Cardinals, while the No. 1 doubles team of Annie Hierl and Maddie Bahr and No. 2 doubles team of Kelli Cole and Hannah Grahl also earned victories.
Fond du Lac 4, Kohler 3
Singles: No. 1: Nicole Feltz (FDL) def. Audra Hoffman, 6-4, 6-3. No. 2: Anna Mesalles (KOH) def. Melina Zompolas, 6-3, 6-2. No. 3: Lauren Horth (KOH) def. Lizabee Browy, 7-6(1), 7-6(1). No. 4: Toni Winkler (FDL) def. Ryah Gutschow, 6-1, 6-1.
Doubles: No. 1: Annie Hierl/Maddie Bahr (FDL) def. Katie Lindow/Allie Bryce, 6-3, 6-2. No. 2: Kelli Cole/Hannah Grahl def. Jamie Lewis/Frannie Hillstrom, 5-7, 6-1, 11-9. No. 3: Emily Guesneau/Amelia Grose (KOH) def. Kendalynn Acheson/Lydia Dean, 6-2, 6-2.
Fond du Lac dominates Kimberly
Fond du Lac 6, Kimberly 1: Behind a doubles sweep, the Fond du Lac girls tennis team defeated Kimberly in a Fox Valley Association dual meet on Thursday.
The No. 1 doubles team of Annie Hierl and Maddie Bahr, No. 2 doubles team of Kelli Cole and Hannah Grahl and No. 3 doubles team of Kendalynn Acheson and Lydia Dean all earned victories for the Cardinals. No. 1 singles Nicole Feltz, No. 3 singles Lizabee Browy and No. 4 singles Toni Winkler also picked up wins.
Fond du Lac 6, Kimberly 1
Singles: No. 1: Nicole Feltz (FDL) def. Alex Dorn, 6-1, 6-1. No. 2: Brianna VanNuland (KIM) def. Melina Zompolas, 7-6(5), 6-2. No. 3: Lizabee Browy (FDL) def. Claire Gorges, 6-2, 6-2. No. 4: Toni Winkler (FDL) def. Haylee Rodgers, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2.
Doubles: No. 1: Annie Hierl/Maddie Bahr (FDL) def. Lexie Berry/Kaitlyn Pierry, 6-1, 6-3. No. 2: Kelli Cole/Hannah Grahl (FDL) def. Milera Pirman/Claire Diamond, 6-3, 6-2. No. 3: Kendalynn Acheson/Lydia Dean (FDL) def. Taylor Johnson/Mackenzie Freck, 6-2, 3-6, def.
Fond du Lac falls to Oshkosh West
Oshkosh West 6, Fond du Lac 1: The Fond du Lac girls tennis team fell to the Wildcats in a Fox Valley Association dual meet Monday at Fond du Lac.
No. 1 singles player Nicole Feltz picked up the lone win of the day for the Cardinals, defeating Emily Edsell 6-2, 6-0. The closest loss of the meet for Fond du Lac was at No. 3 doubles, where Kendalynn Acheson and Lydia Dean fell to Colleen Koerner and Alli Wolff 2-6, 6-3, 3-6.
Oshkosh West 6, Fond du Lac 1
Singles: No. 1: Nicole Feltz (FDL) def. Emily Edsell, 6-2, 6-0. No. 2: Kimmy Steinert (OW) def. Melina Zompolas 6-1, 6-3. No. 3: Erica Casper (OW) def. Lizabee Browy, 6-2, 6-3. No. 4: Haley Asuma (OW) def. Toni Winker, 6-2, 6-0.
Doubles: No. 1: Katie Buege/Danielle Hawi (OW) def. Annie Hierl/Maddie Bahr, 6-2, 6-4. No. 2: Erin Pyle/Maggie Schiessl (OW) def. Kelli Cole/Hannah Grahl, 6-1, 6-2. No. 3: Colleen Koerner/Alli Wolff (OW) def. Kendalynn Acheson/Lydia Dean, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.
Fond du Lac defeats Oshkosh North in FVA play
Fond du Lac 5, Oshkosh North 2: The Fond du Lac girls tennis team continued its strong start to the 2014 season with a Fox Valley Association dual meet win over Oshkosh North Wednesday afternoon at Oshkosh.
No. 1 singles Nicole Feltz had the most dominating win of the day for the Cardinals, dispatching Oshkosh North’s Savannah Prehn 6-0, 6-1. No. 3 singles Melina Zompolas also picked up a nice victory for Fond du Lac, defeating Morgan Moxon 6-1, 6-2 and No. 4 singles Toni Winkler beat Laney Diamond 6-2, 6-2.
In doubles action, Fond du Lac’s No. 2 doubles team of Kendalynn Acheson and Hannah Grahl picked up a 6-3, 6-3 win, while the No. 3 team of Lizabee Browy and Lydia Dean won 6-1, 6-3. No. 2 singles Maddie Bahr fell in a close match to Lesley Kutnink.
Fond du Lac 5, Oshkosh North 2
No. 1 singles: Nicole Feltz (FDL) def. Savannah Prehn, 6-0, 6-1. No. 2 singles: Lesley Kutnink (ON) def. Maddie Bahr, 6-4, 6-3. No. 3 singles: Melina Zompolas (FDL) def. Morgan Moxon, 6-1, 6-2. No. 4 singles: Toni Winkler (FDL) def. Laney Diamond, 6-2, 6-2. No. 1 doubles: Meg Hartzell/Alyssa Schaefer (ON) def. Annie Hierl/Kelli Cole, 6-0, 6-0. No. 2 doubles: Kendalynn Acheson/Hannah Grahl (FDL) def. Caitlyn Schafer/Genessi Bryant, 6-3, 6-3. No. 3 doubles: Lizabee Browy/Lydia Dean (FDL) def. Kjersten Kleveland/Catherine Drayna, 6-1, 6-3.
Senior Spotlight: Fond du Lac’s Feltz back to former self on the court
It wasn’t so long ago that Nicole Feltz was unsure about her tennis future. Between injuries and general frustration, Feltz reached a point where she was no longer having fun. The thought of packing up her racket and quitting a sport she’d played for a decade ran through her mind once or twice the past couple years. Fast forward to this moment in time, one in which Feltz is undoubtedly one of the best girls tennis players in the area and will be a heavy favorite to advance to her fourth state tournament. Injury-free, the Fond du Lac senior is playing maybe the best tennis of her life only a year after the low point in her career. Last year, Feltz suffered a broken rib early on that sidelined her for most of the season. Although she managed to come back before the postseason and qualified for state again, she wasn’t the same player. Part of the frustration she experienced her junior year was due to something completely out of her control. But she also knew coming into her senior year that she may need to approach tennis just a little bit differently if she hoped to get out of what had become a mental rut. For her, that meant getting back to the essence of why she started playing tennis in the first place — having fun. Off to a 16-1 start this year, she credits that mindset as the reason she’s back to playing so well.
“Just going out and having fun because it’s my senior year and I don’t have another year to come back,” Feltz said. “So I talked to my parents because I had a rough year last year, obviously, and I wanted to compete throughout the whole season and just have fun. I’ve been playing more relaxed than I have the last three years.” It’s proven to be exactly the medicine Feltz needed and is something Fond du Lac girls tennis coach Heather DeGroot hoped to see out of her star player in 2014. “After last season, she struggled coming back,” DeGroot said. “She really had to re-evaluate her reason for playing tennis and why she wanted to play. My expectations for her after finding out she was coming back and knowing that she kind of had her college goals set was to see her love of the game. With her injury and her struggle last year, we didn’t see that as much. Even she wondered why she was playing some matches. I wanted to see her enjoy it a little more.”
Winning 16 of her first 17 matches, Feltz appears poised to once again advance to the state tournament in Madison. In fact, her only loss this year came to West Bend East’s Lexi Keberle, the reigning WIAA Division 1 state champion. In describing how she plays and why she’s so successful, Feltz talked about how she likes short points — hitting a winner and getting it over with. “I’m aggressive,” she said. “I don’t like to run so I just try to end the point really fast and hit deep to the corners. Not get a 10-ball rally. I usually lose those.” DeGroot also mentioned Feltz’s aggressive style of play, but pointed out how much she’s developed as an overall player since she first stepped onto the court at Fond du Lac four years ago. “She loves to hit winners,” DeGroot said of Feltz. “She loves the fast pace. Her favorite shot is a tie between a cross-court winner, she hits the lines really well, or a down-the-line winner. I think that over the years, her game has stayed the same in that her preference has stayed the same, but her maturity has helped it become a better style for her. You can’t come out here and just hit winners. That’s not going to work against everybody.
“Every year, I think we’ve seen that patience go up and up. This year she has the patience to be able to adjust her style of play in order to play her opponent. She’s tailored it to win more against different types of opponents.” If Feltz does advance to her fourth state tourney, it would be a special moment for her especially because of what she’s had to overcome not only in the past year, but during her career. “It would mean a lot especially because of last year,” Feltz said of the prospect of advancing to state for a fourth time. “Even my freshman year, I hurt my shoulder really bad and I retired at state. But it would mean I persevered through everything that’s been thrown at me and it would mean a lot to be able to go all four years even with the injuries.” She also pointed out that without the support of her personal tennis coaches, she wouldn’t be where she is now in having a chance at another state appearance. “The only reason why I’m here is because of my two coaches,” she said. “John Frausto at Center Court (in Fond du Lac) and now Tony Daharsh at Fox Cities (Racquet Club in Appleton) — they’ve both been there through all my injuries and they never gave up. I was at a point before my junior year, the summer before tennis started, where I didn’t want to play. I was just so frustrated, but they stuck it out with me. I text Coach Tony after every match and he’s always positive even if I lose. He’s just been a big part of my mental stability on the court now.” As far as continuing her tennis career collegiately, Feltz has been in contact with coaches at Weber State in Utah, but is more concerned with academics at the moment and would look to play club tennis if varsity tennis didn’t work out. That’s in the future. Right now, her focus is on finishing what she started this year and ending her spectacular high school career with a bang. For her, that means another trip to state and playing as well as she can when she’s down there. “Finish off strong like I’ve started,” Feltz said. “Hopefully get a good seed at state because I was seeded my sophomore year and I kind of choked. I was just so nervous because it was my first time at No. 1 singles going to state. … I just want to compete well at state, win a few rounds. I don’t expect to go super far because everyone is so good there. But I just want to win a few rounds and see where it goes from there.”
Fondy picks up FVA win over Appleton West
Fond du Lac 5, Appleton West 2: The Cardinals swept all of singles play in a Fox Valley Association win at home.
At No. 1 singles Nicole Feltz improves to 17-1 on the year with a 6-1, 6-1 win while Melina Zompolas, Lizabee Browy and Toni Winkler picked up wins as well. Zompolas won 6-3, 7-5, Browy won 6-0, 6-1 while Winkler added a 6-1, 6-0 win.
Annie Hierl and Maddie Bahr picked up the lone win at No. 1 doubles with a 6-3, 6-1 victory.
Fond du Lac 5, Appleton West 2
Singles: No. 1: Nicole Feltz (FDL) def. Savannah Snelling 6-1, 6-1. No. 2: Melina Zompolas (FDL) def. Olivia Smith 6-3, 7-5. No. 3: Lizabee Browy (FDL) def. Sunitha Doraivelu 6-0, 6-1. No. 4: Toni Winkler (FDL) def. Kenlie Cerull 6-1, 6-0.
Doubles: No. 1: Annie Hierl/Maddie Bahr (FDL) def. Alexa Curtis/Mary Ketter 6-3, 6-1. No. 2: Grace Ourada/Claudia Meyers (AW) def. Kelli Cole/Hannah Grahl 6-1, 3-6. No. 3: Sarah Mueller/Cassie Welhouse (AW) def. Kendalynn Acheson/Lydia Dean 2-6, 6-2, 7-5.
Fond du Lac goes 1-2 at Brookfield Central tourney
Brookfield Central Tournament: The Fond du Lac girls tennis team went 1-2 on the second day of a tournament hosted by Brookfield Central on Saturday. The Cardinals fell 6-1 to Brookfield Central and 4-3 to Kettle Moraine before bouncing back with a 5-2 win over New Berlin Eisenhower. Nicole Feltz went 3-0 on the day at No. 1 singles to pace Fond du Lac. Melina Zompolas and Lizabee Browy both picked up a pair of wins at No. 2 and No. 3 singles, respectively.
Brookfield Central 6, Fond du Lac 1
Singles: No. 1: Nicole Feltz (FDL) def. Sasha Semina, 6-3, 7-6(5). No. 2: Libby Protz (BC) def. Melina Zompolas, 6-2, 6-2. No. 3: Saloni Rao (BC) def. Lizabee Browy, 6-0, 6-0. No. 4: Claire Alderton (BC) def. Toni Winkler, 6-0, 6-1.
Doubles: No. 1: Hannah Sekaran/Annie Porritt (BC) def. Annie Hierl/Maddie Bahr, 6-3, 6-0. No. 2: Michaela Evanich/Shay Pudokas (BC) def. Kelli Cole/Hannah Grahl, 6-1, 6-3. No. 3: Alex Yavinlovich/Alana Michaels (BC) def. Kendalynn Acheson/Lydia Dean 6-2, 6-0.
Kettle Moraine 4, Fond du Lac 3
Singles: No. 1: Nicole Feltz (FDL) def. Emily Behling, 7-6(2), 6-2. No. 2: Melina Zompolas (FDL) def. Brenna Mertes, 7-6(7), 6-3. No. 3: Lizabee Browy (FDL) def. Claire Martin, 7-6(6), 5-7, 10-7. No. 4: Mina Mohsenian (KM) def. Toni Winkler, 6-0, 6-0.
Doubles: No. 1: Megan Zeier/Haley Reynolds (KM) def. Annie Hierl/Maddie Bahr, 6-2, 6-1. No. 2: Sarah Lombardi/Emily Showalter (KM) def. Kelli Cole/Hannah Grahl, 7-6(8), 6-4. No. 3: Adrianna Stasinoulias/Maddie Leahy (KM) def. Kendalynn Acheson/Lydia Dean, 7-6(6), 6-2.
Fond du Lac 5, New Berlin Eisenhower 2
Singles: No. 1: Nicole Feltz (FDL) def. Kristin Sperka, 6-0, 6-0. No. 2: Melina Zompolas (FDL) def. Shannon Hegeman, 6-3, 7-6(3). No. 3: Lizabee Browy (FDL) def. Julia Catalano, 6-1, 6-3. No. 4: Toni Winkler (FDL) def. Meghan Sommers, 6-2, 6-0.
Doubles: No. 1: Sam Ramsey/Erin Dobrzynski (NBE) def. Annie Hierl/Maddie Bahr, 6-3, 7-5. No. 2: Emma Freichels/Maddie Seely (NBE) def. Kelli Cole/Hannah Grahl, 1-6, 7-5, 10-6. No. 3: Kendalynn Acheson/Lydia Dean (FDL) def. Sammy Yocks/Maggie Majewski, 7-6(2), 6-4.