by MARK CAUL
Lehman’s mixed-doubles team of Penelope Kittel and John Martin lost in the quarterfinals of the UIL state Class 4A tennis tournament Monday at The World of Tennis in Lakeway. (Photo by Judy Cooper)
When the Lehman mixed doubles duo of John Martin and Penelope Kittel took the court for their state quarterfinal match, they were ready to play.
After listening to pep talks and heeding last minute advice from athletic director Steve Davis, principal Elsa Hinojosa and sophomore tennis phenom Adolfo Gonzalez, the pair appeared to be ready to duplicate their surprising run through the regional tennis tournament a few weeks back.
But at the UIL Class 4A state tennis tournament at The World of Tennis in Lakeway they ran into something that even a lot of veterans have trouble avoiding – a case of nerves. And it cost them dearly.
The Wichita Falls Rider pair of Tom Holka and Leigh Martin captured an easy 6-1 win in the first game and rode that momentum to a three set win over the Lehman pair 6-1, 5-7, 6-3.
“We got off to a slow start from the very beginning and that hurt us a lot,” Martin said. “We looked around and saw all the people out here and kind of got a little nervous. It took us a while to start playing our game.”
After Kittel held serve to even the first game at 1-1, it was all Rider from that point.
Leigh Martin’s strong serve and Holka’s excellent all-around game made them a tough match-up for the Lehman pair.
After Leigh Martin slammed a winner past Kittel to give the Rider pair a 2-1 advantage, both Kittel and John Martin failed to hold serve and before they could even blink the Lehman duo was down 4-1.
“We didn’t come out with the same intensity as we did in the regionals,” Lehman head coach Orlando DeLaFuente said. “They were a very good team and when you dig yourself into a first set hole against them, it’s hard to try to come back and win.”
Two forehand winners by Holka secured the first game for Rider.
After a brief timeout between games, the Lehman pair stormed back and appeared to have overcome their stage fright in the second stanza.
John Martin smashed a volley winner between the two Rider players and then followed it up with another baseline shot to even the match at 3-3.
Holka helped Rider regain the lead at 4-3 by whizzing a shot just beyond the reach of Kittel.
Trailing 5-3 with Rider needing only a few points to close out the Lobos, John Martin delivered a shot that sliced just inside the line to push the Lobos within 5-4 and then a few points later gave the Lobos a 6-5 lead.
On the next serve, Kittel pounded another winner through the middle to help close out the game for Lehman, tying the match at one set apiece.
“We started to get some momentum after we stopped them twice from winning the match,” Kittel said. “But it took a lot out of us for the third set.”
The more experienced Rider pair wasted no time in jumping on the Lehman duo, winning the first two games before Kittel’s potent serving pulled the Lobos briefly within 2-1.
But from there, the Rider pair showed why they were the No. 2 seeded team at the state tournament by breaking Kittel and John Martin once each and then Holka scored consecutive points with a couple of nice shots that eluded the Lobos.
“It was hard for our kids to have to come off of that very emotional second set and go right back at it,” DeLaFuente said. “It boiled down to who executed their game plan better. And they were a little bit better than us today at doing that. You have to give them credit. They played a very clean third set.”
Rider’s Leigh Martin and Tom Holka are the school’s fifth straight mixed doubles team to advance to state since the UIL started the event.
DeLaFuente believes the experience of advancing to the state quarterfinals is a huge boost for his tennis program’s future. And with Gonzalez, Desiree Kittel, Martin and junior Royce McCabe slated to return next season, the Lobos may have to start looking for extra room in the trophy case.
“We’re very proud of what Pene and John accomplished this year,” DeLaFuente said. “For our tennis program to now be mentioned in the same breath as Westlake, New Braunfels and Lake Travis, that’s pretty cool.”
