For the first time in school history, Bonners Ferry High School has a tennis team. It took two young people with a desire and drive to play high school tennis to get the ball rolling. Daniel Woelfle and Kaitlyn Becker approached Sandpoint High School athletic department about joining their team, but because of some red tape and Boundary County residency, they were unable to compete as Bulldogs.
Though they could practice on the Sandpoint High School courts and join in some matches as junior varsity, this was not enough to compete at the 4A district or state level.
Daniel, playing for Sandpoint junior varsity, ended his season with 17 wins and two losses in boys singles, and playing for Bonners Ferry finished with four wins and four losses. He placed sixth in the district tournament, narrowly missing the cut-off to quality for the state matches.
He fought hard.
“It literally took me to the brink of physical exhaustion.” he said of one match. “To the point where even my racket strings snapped! But, overall, I had a lot of fun, especially playing as a co-op with Sandpoint … it gave me some more experience into the skill and different techniques of different teams and people.”
Playing for the Bulldogs, Kaitlyn had 19 wins and five losses in girl’s doubles, and she had ten wins and two losses for the Badgers, placing third in girl’s singles. Kaitlyn receives the honor of being the first student to ever represent Bonners Ferry High School in the State 4A Tennis Tournament.
“Both kids did very well in their overall records for the season. The future of tennis in Bonners Ferry is still a little uncertain,” Becker said, “but the future of tennis for both of these athletes is bright for sure.”