They are heading into the second week of tennis with much enthusiasm, according to head boys coach Ricky Carver.

The Panthers hosted Central of Grand Junction this past Friday afternoon, Aug. 25, and then they took on Montrose Saturday morning, Aug. 26, at the new Parque de Vida Tennis Courts. The Panthers defeated the Warriors 4-3 but fell to Montrose 0-7 in games that were really much closer than the scores indicated.

"We head to Grand Junction and Fruita this weekend. After beating Central and playing hard against Montrose, they are motivated," Carver said. "We will be working hard this week. Grand Junction High and Fruita-Monument have very good teams. We really have nothing to lose because all we will be looking for is improvement and strategy in our play. These two matches may be coming at a good time."

The Panthers will not be playing the Tigers or the Wildcats at Districts anyway as both of those schools are Class 5A.

Singles player J.C. Keetso fell 4-6, 4-6 to Brad Gonyeau. It was Keetso’s first singles match ever.

"His serves were a little inconsistent which hurt him," Carver commented. "But he moved well on the court. He made some mistakes but this is a player, with some more experience, who J.C. can beat."

Billy Innis is playing in the no. 2 position. Innis defeated Robert Beaunk 6-4, 6-3. He had a really consistent baseline game. He had good court movement. He attacked the net and played his game, according to Carver.

No. 3 singles saw Panther Jeff Anderson take on Stephen Phillips in what would end up being a marathon match. The match got started the first and was the last to finish. It lasted some three hours. Anderson lost the first game 6-7 (5-7 tiebreaker), won 6-4, and won 7-6 (7-3).

"He was nervous in the first match and his ground strokes were inconsistent which hurt him," Carver said. "He kept attacking at the net and began hitting the ball away. He was up 5-3 but he tightened up and lost. I told him that despite losing he had the mental edge. He got way ahead and then held on. In the third set, Anderson changed strategies and he made some first serves."

Gerald Keetso-Keegan Moore were beaten by Central’s Rob Cook-Brett Kruger 1-6, 2-6.

"Their play was rough. They missed some easy volleys and their game was just not happening. I think nerves may have played a smart part. This is a new team to competitive tennis but I’m not making excuses for them," Carver noted.

The team of Troy Tanner and Noah Rauscher lost to Warriors Scott Brett and Brian Mill 4-6, 2-6. Tanner told Carver that he was nervous. They missed some easy volleys and did not serve well. Brett and Mill hit their second soft serves, the ones they got in, hard back.

David Wilcken and Devin Perkins defeated Josh Henson and Josh Harp 6-3, 6-3.

"Wilcken and Perkins are both good athletes and their athleticism showed. They went to the net. Actually, they were forced to go to the net. The Central players did not serve the ball well," Carver said.

The Panthers’ no. 4 team of Sean Carey and Chance Harrison won by forfeit. However, they played an exhibition match against Central’s no. 3 players and Cortez won 7-6 (7-4) and 6-4.

"This was a good way to start the season. It was a good win for us," Carver commented.

The Warriors opened their boys tennis season with one position short of a full roster. As it turned out, it may have cost them.

Cortez took on the Indians the following day.

Keetso fell 0-6, 0-6 to John Wickham.

"Wickham is a good player. He hit the ball hard. J.C. tried to play baseline with him but Wickham went side-to-side and changed the pace of the game when he needed to. He was truly in control although there were a lot of deuces so the match was closer than the score indicated," Carver added.

Innis fell 2-6, 1-6 to Montrose’ Charlie Burke.

"Again, the games were much closer than the scores indicated. This was a very competitive match. It lasted for more than two hours," Carver reported.

Anderson fell 1-6, 0-6 to Dallas Britton. Anderson started out slow and never seemed to recover. He lost the first set and then seemed frustrated in the second.

Keetso-Moore were defeated by Nate Banks and Chance Evans 1-6, 1-6.

"They played a lot better than they did the day before. They were more aggressive but they (Banks-Evans) hit down the middle. They got the ball up high and the Montrose players hit them back," he said.

The no. 3 doubles team of Wilcken-Perkins lost 4-6, 0-6 to Tyler White and Matt Smith.

"They played a great first match," Carver noted. "They moved well. They stopped being aggressive and their serves did not go in during the second match."

No. 4 doubles squad of Sean Carey and Harrison lost 2-6, 1-6 to Montrose’ Joe Crenshaw and Taylor Day.

"It was a pretty good match. But they had troubles with their first serves. They made a soft second serve and was hit hard back. Their serve-receive was weak," he remarked.