The Newton girls’ tennis team is opening their first ever fall season in Knoxville today, at the seven-team Knoxville Invitational. The Cardinal girls were supposed to play at Des Moines East on Monday, but the meet was  postponed, and no makeup date has been announced. Joining Newton and the Panthers at today’s invitational are Ballard, Clarke, Creston, Pella, and Saydel. 

Newton girls tennis coach Erick Zehr has five seniors listed among his top eight players, in Camryn Andrew, Sloan Broderson, Emersyn Gross, Brooklyn Sterling, and Ava Williams. They are joined by juniors Morgan Frehse and Kaetlin McPartlin, and sophomore Kenzly Brant. With his new freshman, coach Zehr says he’s had contact with all of them before in camps or clinics.

“A lot of times when we start the season, our first couple of practices are very basic. This is how you hold a rack, this is what a forehand is, that kind of stuff. This time we were able to skip right through the uber beginner stuff and jump right to the intermediate beginner stuff. So that was a nice change of pace.”  

The Knoxville Invitational kicks off the Cardinals’ first fall season today at 9 am.