Lindsey Newman wins tennis conference title

South Whidbey’s Lindsey Newman became the Northwest District’s singles champion Saturday at Bellingham.

Newman was down 5-2 in the third set before staging a remarkable comeback to win the two-hour, 35-minute match over Erica Bosman from Lynden.

Her thrilling win will pay big dividends, too.

“Lindsey will be one of the top seeds going into the state tournament in Yakima on May 25-26,” Falcon coach Tom Kramer said.

In her first match, she mastered Alison Rooney from Blaine to win 6-0, 6-0.

In her second outing, she defeated Nancy Moore from Bellingham 6-0, 6-0.

And in the semi-finals, Newman overcame Holly Robins from Lynden and won 6-1, 6-2.

In the finals Lindsey defeated last year’s defending champion Erica Bosman — who had been the prohibitive favorite — from Lynden 4-6, 6-4 and 7-6.

“It was one of the happiest moments of my life,” Newman said later.

“Everything I’ve been working on just came together. Mr. Kramer gave me a hug and even bought me a Jamba juice. Unprecedented,” she said.

Newman added that she and Bosman have become major rivals this year.

“Erica started getting frustrated after the second set and ran out of gas,” Newman recalled. “But she’ll be at state and we’ll play again. And she’ll lose again.”

Newman has a few extra days to get ready as finals don’t begin until the Memorial Day weekend; she plans to focus on serving and first-volley put-aways.

Unfortunately, Shannon Craig got the luck of the draw and played the No. 1 seed, the returning district champion from last year, Bosman.

“Shannon lost 0-6, 0-6, but played hard and gained experience in what she needs to work on for next year,” Kramer said.

In doubles action, Noelle Metz and Nicole Zalewski lost in the first round to Koss and Baca of Anacortes, 7-6, 4-6 and 2-6. The first round is single elimination so they were done for the tournament.

Victoria Comfort and Natalie Wheeler saw victory in their first match against Shafer and Shafer of Lakewood, 6-4, 6-0. In the second round they played Koss and Baca of Anacortes and lost 0-6, 6-4 and 1-6. They then played Hendrickson and Richardson of Blaine and won 7-6, 6-7 and 6-0.

Finally they were beaten by Brooke and Pearce of Bellingham and lost 6-7 (8-10), 0-6; they finished in fifth place.

As a team, South Whidbey finished third in districts behind Lynden and Bellingham. The top three singles and doubles victors from each school go to state.

“Overall the team had a fine showing and hopefully gained valuable experience, which may help improve personal and team results for next year,” Kramer said.

Jeff VanDerford can be reached at 221-5300 or sports@southwhidbeyrecord.com.

Comment on this story.

COMMENTING RULES: We encourage an open exchange of ideas in our online community, but we ask you to follow our guidelines for respecting community standards. In a nutshell, don't say anything you wouldn't want your mother to read. Please see our FAQ if you have questions or concerns about using Facebook to comment.