The Blaine County Journal News-Opinion - We've Got The County Covered

The Chinook Sugarbeeter Tennis Team was in Bozeman this past weekend for the Montana Class B/C Girls State Tennis Tournament. The 'Beeters had two girls in the Singles Tournament and two Doubles teams in the mix as well. At the end of the Tournament the 'Beeters had captured an overall team fourth place finish, scoring 18 points.

Sophomore Mya Berreth put together an outstanding tournament in her first opportunity on the big stage at the State B/C Meet. Berreth battled her way to a fourth place finish over the course of the three day tournament to lead the way for the 'Beeters.

The 'Beeters had success all the way through the line up with each picking up at least one win during the tournament. Berreth finished with a 4-2 overall record while senior Allison Powell went 1-2 in the singles Tournament. The Doubles Team of junior Lexi Pitkanen and Torin Cecrle went 2-2 for the 'Beeters. Freshman Rilee Molyneaux and freshman Jeni Mord qualified for the state tournament as the 'Beeters No. 2 Doubles team and earned a 1-2 record in Bozeman.

Berreth began the tournament with a forfeit win over Red Lodge's Krista Hartmann. In Round 2 Berreth took on Haily Comp from Missoula Loyola, Berreth cruised to a 6-1, 6-3 win to advance to the round of eight.

In her quarterfinal match Berreth took down Callie Martinez of Big Fork in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4 to move on to the semifinals. The competition ratcheted up a notch as Berreth took the court against Choteau's Katie Major. When the final point was scored Berreth was dealt her first loss of the tournament 2-6, 5-7.

Showing plenty of resilience Berreth regained her focus and prepared or her next match against Conrad's Natalie Brosder in the Consolation semifinal. Berreth was sharp, and after winning the opening set in a back and forth 6-4 battle, she closed out Brosder 6-2 to advance to the 3/4th place match.

Berreth ran into a buzz saw in her final match against Taylee Sawyer of Simms. Sawyer had everything working and Berreth wasn't able to gain any traction in falling 2-6, 1-6 to finish fourth.

Berreth was outstanding in her first appearance on the big stage of the State B/C Tournament and was more than excited about her performance. A performance that was the result of lots and lots off extra work, "I stayed after practice a lot to help better my serve and shots, and also went in before practice and hit with my teammates."

Seeing her work in practice, the payoff was rewarding, "It felt great to have all the extra work pay off to win Divisional. It also felt great to have my teammate in the championship with me," said Berreth. "It was very rewarding to have the opportunity to play at such a high level and succeed."

Being her first time at the state meet, Berreth was able to maintain her composure, "I tried to stay focused during the tournament on what I wanted to accomplish and took it one match at a time."

Not ready to rest on her accomplishments, Berreth has her sights set on the future, "I plan on putting more work in over the summer to help better my overall tennis game. Playing more tennis and possibly getting some coaching from different coaches to learn new techniques."

She is confident those efforts will payoff, "Next year I feel I have a really good chance to compete at state. I would also like to thank my teammates and coaches who helped me get better throughout the season."

Chinook sophomore Mya Berreth battled her way to a 4-2 record at the Montana Class B/C Girls State Tennis Tournament in Bozeman this past weekend. Berreth's efforts garnered her a fourth place finish in what was her first appearance at the State B/C.

Chinook Head Coach Janelle Deanon was thrilled with her teams performance, "Overall, I'm extremely proud of how the girls ended the season. Of course we would have liked to do a bit more at state but they all played to the best of their abilities and came up against some strong competition and even stronger weather!"

The success of this season establishes a strong foundation moving forward, "I think for next year we have a goal to not only go further as individuals but as a team and that will start by sharpening their skills on the court and their mental game. At the end of the day tennis is extremely mental and if the girls can focus on pushing through when things aren't going the way they hoped I think they'll go a lot further," stated Deanon.

Deanon was thrilled to see Berreth play so well, "I couldn't be more excited that for Mya's first state appearance. She's still got two more years and I can't wait to see what she can accomplish." As far as the 'Beeter are concerned as a team, Deanon thinks the girls have earned some respect, "I think a lot of people underestimate our team, but hopefully we showed them that we're getting stronger each year, and we're already excited for what the future holds!"