New Hope wins opening match

New Hope was hoping to discover some of its depth, while Palisades already had a test of attrition.

In the end, New Hope walked away with a 4-1 decision when the two teams met Aug. 28.

“That’s a nice start for us,” said New Hope head coach Mike Dickey about his team’s opening match. “We had some nice showings from the girls.

“We had a pretty good season last year. We’ll probably be in a rebuilding year this season.”

New Hope’s top three singles players, Kate Heindrichs, Brianna Wilkinson and Natalie Manser, won their respective matches, and the Lions’ top doubles team of Katie McDonnell and Keanna Marcelo won their match.

Palisades’ second doubles team of junior Zohra Mekki and sophomore Emma Watson provided the lone Pirates victory.

For the Pirates, it was their third match in as many days. They had dropped a 5-0 decision to Pen Argyl and a 6-0 match to Allentown Central Catholic. Palisades also had a scrimmage with Pennridge.

“The New Hope match was a tough one for us,” said Palisades head coach Frank Reppert. “They are a good team, but we also had a two-and-a-half hour with Pen Argyl the day before. I think we were a little worn out.”

Reppert is optimistic his relatively inexperienced squad can adjust, as the Pirates lost six seniors from last year’s team.

Sophomore Katherine Kelly will handle the number one singles spot for Palisades. Seniors Erin DeAngelis and Katelyn Richter are the Pirates’ number two and three singles players respectively.

Sophomore Mary Aherne and senior Cassie Foresman are the Pirates’ number one doubles team. Sophomores Syrena Clymer and Allie Wenskoski are the third doubles team.

Dickey hopes to work some of the Lions’ younger players into the lineup as the season progresses. Junior Logan Palau provides some depth as a returnee from last year.

He believes his team can develop during the season. The Lions were above the .500 mark last season, and they lost a district playoff match to Gwynedd Mercy last year.

They opened their Bicentennial Athletic League (BAL) season against Delco Christian Tuesday.

“They are always a good barometer for us to see where we are,” said Dickey about Delco Christian. “It will be interesting in the BAL for us. We’ll see how things go.”

Reppert also will be closely monitoring his team’s progress along the way.

“Our girls are learning how to play their spots,” said Reppert. “We have a number of girls playing in different roles.

“We had more of a veteran team last year. We just have to keep working and stay patient.”