On Saturday, younger members of the Belles tennis team traveled three hours to Albion, Mich., to scrimmage a team that is usually in the MIAA conference but wasn't this year due to lack of players.The Belles did well, winning all of their singles and doubles matches, 9-0. Although it was only a scrimmage, this match served as a stepping-stone for several of the younger players on the team. "Because we lost our top five players who were seniors last year, we have a really young team that needs experience like this to get them ready for future matches," senior Katie Harthen said.For several Belles, this was their first time playing in a college match. "It was a lot of fun. I got to play with one of my friends in a doubles match which we won and I was really happy about that," freshman Jackie Sias said. "There were some really close matches, but everybody pulled out a win and did a really good job," sophomore Kelly Barnett said. "The doubles teams worked really well together despite not having much of a chance to practice with each other."The Belles are using every opportunity they can this early in the season to get ready for their big matches against conference rivals Hope, Kalamazoo and Albion. "Those three are our biggest challenges, we always look forward to those and take a lot of pride away when we win," Harthen said. "Those are the ones we prepare for the most and look forward to."Even though Saturday's match was important, the Belles still enjoyed themselves. "It was a good match and we had fun," Harthen said. "We were out there for practice and to have a good time and that's exactly what we did. It was a good practice for us. I think that we're doing well so far and that we're looking really good."
