In the midst of the wettest August in Muncie’s history, we finally caught a break in the weather Wednesday evening and gained a 5-0 shutout victory at New Palestine in a Hoosier Heritage Conference match.

The Eagles drove through rain on the way to the match and came through heavy rain on the way home from the match.  But they dodged the raindrops for three hours of dry time at the Dragon courts in the season opener.

New Pal entered with a 2-0 record, including a victory over a solid Whiteland team.  The Dragons used five seniors in their seven-player varsity lineup.

Delta countered with a lineup of one senior, one junior, four sophomores and a freshman.  And the Eagles limited New Pal to just 17 total games.

First off the court was No. 1 doubles, where Tyce Dishman and Brandon Grubbs won 6-0, 6-1.  Luke Atkinson then finished off his 6-0, 6-0 victory at No. 3 singles.  Charlie Vannatter followed shortly afterward with a 6-0, 6-2 win at No. 2 singles.

At No. 1 singles, Jackson Darby faced a stiff challenge from senior varsity basketball player Carson Rush, who used his height and athleticism to retrieve dozens of Darby’s aggressive strokes.  The New Pal player built a 5-2 lead in the first set, but Darby turned around the momentum and rallied for a 7-6 (4), 6-1 victory.

Freshman Easton Duckworth and sophomore Kiptyn Schwartz made their varsity debut at No. 2 doubles and collected a 6-4, 6-3 victory that included five overhead smashes over the back fence.

In the JV match, the Eagles lost four tiebreakers and took a 13-2 beating at the hands of the Dragons.

The lone winners for Delta were Jacob Tokar / Denys Krushenytskyi with an 8-1 win at No. 2 doubles and Hunter Reed / Kohlton Ricks with an 8-6 victory at the end of the lineup.

Next up for Delta is the annual Jeffersonville Invitational on Friday and Saturday. The Eagles will compete at varsity, JV and extra JV sites.  The tournament features several of Indiana’s best teams, including Zionsville, Guerin Catholic, Jasper, Columbus North, and Bloomington North. Completing the eight-team field are New Albany and Jeffersonville.

Complete Results

Varsity

DELTA 5, NEW PALESTINE 0

Singles

1. Jackson Darby def. Carson Rush, 7-6 (4), 6-1
2. Charlie Vannatter def. Tyler Walter, 6-0, 6-2
3. Luke Atkinson def. Brock Hehmann, 6-0, 6-0

Doubles

1. Tyce Dishman / Brandon Grubbs def. Jackson Clark / Davis Harrison, 6-0, 6-1
2. Easton Duckworth / Kiptyn Schwartz def. Brody Groce / Jack Hehmann, 6-4, 6-3

Junior Varsity

NEW PALESTINE 13, DELTA 2

JV Singles

1. Cooper Coutinho lost 7-8 (4)
2. Carson Mick lost 2-8
3. Grant Durkovich lost 0-8
4. Drew Durkovich lost 7-8 (1)

JV Doubles

1. Roman Ashcraft / Owen Zacek lost 7-8 (3)
2. Jacob Tokar / Denys Krushenytskyi won 8-1
3. Jensen Moody / Kiptyn Berry lost 3-8
4. Austin Carrigan / Karson Preston lost 7-8 (2)
5. Hayden Case / Jason Ogle lost 5-8
6. Graham Hartman / Stanley Hutchens lost 6-8
7. Evan Lindburgh / Jonah Swift lost 1-8
8. Saul Brown / Denver Stover lost 2-8
9. Teagon Condie / Cohen Williams lost 4-8
10. Hunter Reed / Kohlton Ricks lost 4-8 and then won 8-6