Arrow netters set to mix it up


Excitement and energy are high this fall as the Pipestone Area girls’ tennis team look to make a push toward state tournament qualification as a team.

The Arrows being blanked by the Montevideo Thunder Hawks in the opening round of the Section 3A team tournament last fall wasn’t indicative of their overall campaign. Pipestone Area gave as good they received and saw senior Emma Stahl and junior Toryn Woelber qualify as a doubles tandem for the state tournament. 

Just two main cogs are to be replaced in the PAS machine this fall with Woelber likely to be anchoring the side as the Arrows’ No. 1 singles player. 

Also returning is junior Brielle Kulm, who quickly moved up the ladder in singles play – finishing the season at No. 1 singles as former head coach Ed Gustafson paired Woelber with Stahl for individual section play.

From there, Pipestone Area is likely to experiment with the lineup early this fall, shuffling players in and out of singles and doubles play to find the right combinations to put on the courts heading into the postseason – where head coach Colin Hoppe hopes his Arrows can make some waves.

“We have some strong players returning who have played at the varsity level and then we have 5-6 players who borderline between B squad and varsity,” Hoppe said. “I’ll find ways to rotate them through varsity matches at Nos. 3-4 singles and No. 3 doubles. 

“Players like Toryn and Brielle, instantly, we know are going to be Nos. 1 and 2 singles, they’ve been playing very competitively for a number of years, and then you have to be able to shuffle players in and out to see where their strengths and weaknesses are. In practice they might look really good, but in competition, it happens, they might freeze up. You have to see how they compete, especially early in the season. We have a number of matches before school starts and I’d like to have one or two lineups set by the time we are going to classes this fall.”

Juniors Jenna Boeke, Madison Purdin and Alyssa Enger gained great varsity experience last fall as doubles player, as did sophomore Addison Draper and freshman Vivian Brockberg, while eighth-grader Jasmine Boeke completed the Arrows in singles competition in the No. 4 slot. Where this group of six blossoming athletes falls in the lineup remains to be seen. As Hoppe noted, each of them could see time in early-season singles or doubles matches in developing as strong a lineup as possible.

Jenna Boeke, who also played 2-3 singles matches last fall is likely to make the switch from double to singles to open the 2022 campaign.

“She’s a really sound tennis player, a sound doubles player, but in the world of (high school) tennis you need 4-of-7 points to win the meet; if we can get four points with a solid group of four singles players that’s the route we’ll go. I think for the first couple of meets, we’ll try Jenna at No. 3 singles and see how it goes. If that works, we’ll look for a the strongest fourth. It could be someone like Jasmine or Vivian or … who knows. Maybe Alyssa or Madi could step up there, but right now I see them as being a pretty solid doubles team.

The remaining players, Draper and classmate Alicia Haack, freshmen Kaitlin Hansen, Ava Boucher, Laura Minet and Olyvia Weber and eighth-grader Iva Witte will all be jockeying for positions in the varsity lineup – adding importance to practices and early-season competition.

And the Arrows will get their feet wet just one week into the campaign when they welcome Benson and Morris Area to Pipestone Saturday. The Arrows will square off against the Braves at noon before facing the Tigers at 2 p.m.

“Talking with Ed, and coaching the boys last spring, we could have those two meets Saturday and completely throw the book out and start over fresh on Monday,” Hoppe chuckled. “I think the players vying for a spot will be mainly looking at No. 3 doubles spots, maybe No. 2 doubles, but the No. 3 doubles and No. 4 singles are their chance to play in the varsity lineup. You never know how somebody competes until you throw them out there.

“We have a really good group of girls; they get along, watch out for each other and find ways to build camaraderie and be a team that enjoys the sport as they look to reach their goals.”

And Coach Hoppe, now a veteran instructor in the PAS tennis program, has lofty goals for this group. With the help of assistants James Skyberg and Mark Ference, Hoppe is confident the 2022 Arrows can make a strong push toward the top of the section standings.

“Last year we knew it was going to be a real battle with senior-laden teams; Morris had eight seniors, Benson had six and a lot of the other schools had several strong seniors on their teams,” Hoppe said. “We have a real chance to be leading the pack this year in the section. It’s a big goal to make it far in that tournament, but it’s a realistic goal. I know the girls are working hard to achieve that, and it’s going to come down to how we go through the season – tackling it one match at a time.”

Which begins, in practice, one skill and one stroke at a time.

“A lot of them have come a long way and are becoming very good athletes,” Hoppe said. “Court awareness is always No. 1 in the world of tennis, knowing where you are on the court at any given time without looking around you; and knowing where your opponent is to find the right angles is equally important. 

“Even though it is the first week, it’s coming back to them from last season and summer workouts. They’re picking everything up faster, which hopefully means they’ll be more ambitious about getting their strokes down and working those angles. This week will be really good and we’ll see how it goes Saturday.”