{"id":121691,"date":"2019-08-23T03:42:16","date_gmt":"2019-08-23T08:42:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thevwindependent.com\/news\/?p=121691"},"modified":"2019-08-23T03:43:39","modified_gmt":"2019-08-23T08:43:39","slug":"captains-big-key-to-early-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/2019\/08\/23\/captains-big-key-to-early-success\/","title":{"rendered":"Captains a big key to VW’s early success"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

SCOTT TRUXELL\/<\/strong>independent sports editor<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a close knit team, one that\u2019s off to a fast start early in the season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Van Wert girls\u2019 tennis team is 4-0 (2-0 WBL) and the Lady Cougars have been dominate in each outing, winning the first three matches 5-0 and losing just one match against Celina on Monday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Van Wert’s 2019 tennis captains (left to right): Paige Moonshower, Allie Etter, Alli Morrow and Kaylee Jennings.<\/strong> Scott Truxell\/Van Wert independent<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Before Thursday\u2019s practice, senior captains Alli Morrow (second singles), Paige Moonshower (first doubles) and Kaylee Jennings (second doubles), along with junior captain Allie Etter (first doubles) and head coach Eli Alvarez gathered to explain what fueled the team\u2019s early success, including what was done in the off-season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJust because the season is over that doesn\u2019t mean the work is done,\u201d Morrow said. \u201cYou still have to hit and you still have to get out here and work hard and that\u2019s what makes a difference when the season starts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was just coming out to our winter practices and our summer practices and taking the opportunities that were available to us,\u201d Jennings said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moonshower enjoyed an extended postseason last year, qualifying for Division II district competition at Bowling Green State University, which may have served as a springboard to this season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt really helped with my confidence this year but it also makes me nervous, because I feel like I have a lot of pressure on me now,\u201d Moonshower said. \u201cDuring the winter I went to Westwood (in Lima) to hit and as soon as I was out of softball I got out here and started hitting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those nerves Moonshower mentioned haven\u2019t been evident, because she and Etter haven\u2019t given up more than a single point in a set so far this season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI used to play singles and it was a really big change to do doubles,\u201d Etter explained. \u201cPaige had an opening because her partner left, so I wanted to try doubles and I\u2019m really liking it so far. I\u2019d like to have a winning record and maybe make it to districts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alvarez lauded his captains and he noted the four assumed leadership roles before they were chosen as captains by their teammates. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey took advantage of every opportunity, every event, every function we had, not only were they showing up but they were putting in the effort and showed the other girls the effort that needed to be put in,\u201d Alvarez said. \u201cIt may sound clich\u00e9, but leading by example is exactly what that group has done. Overall, we\u2019re a pretty young team and (as a coach) it\u2019s nice to have that second voice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In any sport, team chemistry is important and the captains agreed this team works and plays well together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis team is different than any team I\u2019ve been on,\u201d Morrow said. \u201cWe all get along, especially the seniors and I think that makes it better.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a closeness that we bring,\u201d Jennings said. \u201cWe\u2019re always trying to have a fun time and keep it positive and that just makes it more enjoyable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I think we’re all pretty close and I like hanging out with the girls,” Moonshower said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI like how close we are and how I\u2019ve gotten friends from the tennis team,\u201d Etter said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The four captains and the rest of the starting lineup \u2013 freshman Grace Lott at first singles, junior Lizzie Rutkowski at third singles and senior Jada Buckner at second doubles \u2013 are expecting continued success throughout the season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPersonally I feel this season would be a lot better for me because last year I played first singles, which is really tough, and so going to second singles I felt that would help me utilize more of my skills,\u201d Morrow said. \u201cWe just have a great team all around and at every spot I feel like we have players that are set up to win.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While tough matches are ahead, Alvarez believes the fast start has helped the team in terms of confidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLast year we won four matches and we\u2019re 4-0 now,\u201d Alvarez stated. \u201cRight now they believe they can beat the Shawnees and the Wapaks of the Western Buckeye League and I think we can too. That\u2019s all you want at the beginning of the year \u2013 that confidence going forward and this group has provided that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Van Wert will host the first annual Cougar Classic with Ayersville, Elida, Lehman Catholic, Lima Sr., St. Marys Memorial and Wauseon starting at 9:30 Saturday morning, then the Lady Cougars will travel to Wapakoneta on Monday. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SCOTT TRUXELL\/independent sports editor It\u2019s a close knit team, one that\u2019s off to a fast start early in the season. The Van Wert girls\u2019 tennis team is 4-0 (2-0 WBL) and the Lady Cougars have been dominate in each outing, winning the first three matches 5-0 and losing just one match against Celina on Monday. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-121691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sports"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-01 03:48:15","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121691","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=121691"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121691\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=121691"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=121691"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=121691"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}