Trojans mop Mustangs

FAIRFIELD — After a couple of close calls to start the season, the Fairfield boys tennis team is finally in the winner’s circle.

The Trojans got it done in style on Tuesday evening, beating Davis County 9-1 in a non-conference home meet.

“We’ve had more tiebreakers than anybody, I’m sure,” said head coach Michael Holt. “We’ve played deep into every game, and it’s nice to have a win.”

Fairfield won five of the six singles matches, all but the No. 1 showdown. The Trojans’ biggest win was in the No. 2 game, where Jeremy Goodale pulled out a 6-0, 6-1 victory.

Brecken Courtright won the No. 3 match 6-0, 6-1. Garrett Flanagan took the No. 4 match 6-2, 6-2.

The Trojans dominated the lower singles matches as well. Jace Hannes cruised in the No. 5 match, winning 6-1, 6-2. Tristan Paton swept the No. 6 match 6-0, 6-0.

Holden and Goodale had to work for the second set of the No. 2 doubles match. The duo took the match 6-0, 6-4 to give the Trojans another point.

Fairfield dominated the bottom two doubles matches. Courtright and Paton won the No. 2 doubles match 6-0, 6-1, and Hannes and Flanagan rolled in the No. 3 doubles match, winning 6-0, 6-2.

“Everybody played well,” Holt said. “When you play a team like this, the tendency is to over hit, so we had a good talk at the beginning to calm down.”

It was Holt’s first win as coach of the Trojans. He was a first-year head coach last year, when the 2020 season was axed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He says the squad is feeling anew now that the 2021 season is underway.

“The first practice, they almost galloped onto the court,” he said. “The kids were sprinting hard, and it was just a feeling we all kind of needed.”

The Trojans are now 1-4 on the season. They host Keokuk on Thursday.