Delta put up a strong fight against No. 1 ranked Carmel on Wednesday evening at the DHS courts.  Although the end result was an 0-5 loss to the Greyhounds,  the Eagles turned in some historic numbers.

The 23rd-ranked Eagles collectively won 27 games, with two of the five positions going deep into tiebreakers.

For comparison sake, here’s how many games Delta had won against Carmel in recent years:

2024 — rained out

2023 (regular season) — 14 games

2023 (state finals) — 8 games

2022 — 10 games

2021 — rained out

2020 — Covid (no match)

2019 — 11 games

So in that context, winning 27 games was a solid performance against the No. 1 team in Indiana.  The Eagles had a lead in the second set in four of the five positions.

The top performance came from senior Brylee Beckley at No. 2 singles. She had several match points but came up just a hair short in a 5-7, 6-4, 12-14 defeat.  That match featured many long, hard-hit rallies.

The Eagles also gave a valiant effort at No. 2 doubles. Junior Rowan Hinds and sophomore Alexa Bratton took the second set to a tiebreaker before falling 1-6, 6-7 (11-13).

At No. 1 singles, junior Elizabeth Bamidele made many scrappy saves against her opponent, Manogna Pagadala.  The final score was 1-6, 0-6, but the quality of play was strong.

At No. 3 singles, junior Olivia Marshall put aside some early nerves and pulled into a lead midway through the second set before falling 1-6, 3-6.

And at No. 1 doubles, senior Kelsey Vest and junior Kate Manor played some tough points but couldn’t quite put all the pieces together on a consistent basis. They fell 1-6, 3-6 to their Carmel opponents, Grace Kim and Brylie Price.

In the JV match, Carmel gained an 11-1 victory.

The lone winners for the Eagles were Avery Gray and Maddi Cox, who won 6-1 in a playback match in doubles.

Marley Dowling and Avery Gray dropped a 5-8 decision at No. 2 doubles in the closest match of the other positions.  Also posting a close result was the combo of Audrey Anderson and Ella Marcum, who lost 4-8 at No. 3 doubles.

Next up for Delta is the Eagle Round Robin on Saturday.  The Eagles play West Lafayette at 9 a.m., then host third-ranked Westfield at 11:30 a.m. before finishing the day against Muncie Burris at 2 p.m.

Complete Results

Varsity
CARMEL 5 DELTA 0

Varsity Singles

1. Elizabeth Bamidele lost 1-6, 0-6 to Manogna Pagadala
2. Brylee Beckley lost 5-7, 6-4,  (12-14) to Madison Littell
3. Olivia Marshall lost 1-6, 3-6 to Gabby Hall

Varsity Doubles

1. Kelsey Vest/Kate Manor lost 1-6, 3-6 to Grace Kim/Brylie Price
2. Rowan Hinds/Alexa Bratton lost 1-6, 6-7 (11-13) to Alex Widjaja/Eesha Singh

JV
CARMEL 11, DELTA 1

JV Singles

1. Stella Sieber lost 1-8
2. Tru Swoboda lost 2-8
3. Maddi Cox lost 1-8

JV Doubles

1. Anna Marcum/Addy Anderson lost 1-8
2. Marley Dowling/Avery Gray lost 5-8
3. Audrey Anderson/Ella Marcum lost 4-8
4. Mylee Jones/Maddy Polito lost 2-8
5. Maggie Ratts/Katelynn Preston lost 1-8
6. Ilicia Ritter/Mackemzie Lipps lost 2-8
7. Avery Barnes/Noelle Longsworth lost 0-6
8. Chloe Oliver/Blaysha Downing lost 0-6
9. Maddi Cox/Avery Gray won 6-1