The Grand County High School girls tennis team started off its season with a home loss against the San Juan Lady Broncos on the afternoon of Monday, Aug. 25.

Despite the loss, Brian Ballard, now starting his fourth year as the Lady Devils’ head coach, said that he is excited about the outlook for the upcoming season.

“We have a fairly young team, with a good mix of experienced and younger players,” Ballard said. “We should be competitive this year.”

A total of 16 girls are currently competing on the Lady Devils’ roster, he said.

The Lady Broncos swept the Lady Devils in all five varsity matches on Monday. In the No. 1 singles match, junior Kayla Weston of Grand faced San Juan’s Mary Royer. Royer, who placed second at state last year, defeated Weston, 6-1, 6-1.

In No. 2 singles, San Juan’s Klea Hurst defeated junior Brityn Ballard of Grand in two sets by the score of 6-4, 6-2.

Grand’s Robin Willscheidt-Johnson, a senior, beat San Juan’s Jessica Swenson 7-5 in the first set in the No. 3 singles competition, but Willscheidt-Johnson lost the next two sets by the score of 4-6, 3-6. The hard-fought match lasted nearly three hours, she said.

In No. 1 doubles, Grand’s duo of Tierra Hawks and Emma Sweeney lost to their San Juan counterparts, 2-6, 4-6. The Lady Devils also lost their No. 2 doubles match, as Mandolin Wilkinson and Madison Johnson were defeated 0-6, 1-6.

The San Juan Lady Broncos, which have 39 players on their roster, also played Grand’s remaining girls tennis players in several junior varsity matches that followed Monday’s varsity matches.

Other players on Grand’s roster include Cassidy Walker, Rosie Fleming, Brooke Mick, Brooklan Chant, Coya Pair-Mossien, Sam Dutton, Aiah Zarahiah, and Kyra Scovill. 

Grand’s assistant girls tennis coaches are Charlie Kulander, Danette Johnson and Jil Kulander.

The Lady Devils next play at at Gunnison on Thursday, Aug. 28. Grand’s next home match is against Manti on Tuesday, Sept. 16.