PORT ANGELES — Janson Pederson led the Port Angeles Roughriders to a 4-3 victory over Sequim in Olympic League boys tennis action.
Pederson won a hard-fought three-set No. 1 singles match against Matthew Richards 3-6, 6-4, 6-4.
“He did not have his best stuff when starting, but was able to find a way to come back after a first-set loss,” Port Angeles coach Gil Stockton said.
“It was a great example to all his teammates of slowing things down in his mind and focusing on his job.”
Stockton awarded Pederson with the Riders’ game ball.
Tyler Nickerson and Kyler Mabrey won the other two singles matches for Port Angeles.
Nickerson defeated Tim Porter 6-2, 6-1, and Mabrey beat Damon Little by the same score in No. 3 singles.
“Both Tyler Nickerson and Kyler Mabrey continue to play the best tennis of their short careers,” Stockton said.
“It is a treat to watch Tyler improve with each match he plays. His play, compared to last year, is truly amazing.”
Sequim took three of the four doubles matches.
Justin Porter and Stephen Prorok defeated Kenny Soule and Keenen Leslie 6-1, 6-1.
Logan Habner and Raymond Lam beat Hayden Woods and Carson Jackson 6-4, 6-3.
Casey Chapman and Dillon Liebert topped Hunter and Orrick Waddell 6-4, 6-3.
Port Angeles’ Wesley Duncan and Devun Wahlsten won the No. 3 doubles match over Thomas Hughes and Blake Wiker 7-5, 6-3.
Sequim (1-4, 1-5) next plays at Klahowya (0-1, 0-3) today.
Port Angeles (1-3, 2-3) also plays on the road today, travelling to face Kingston (2-1, 2-1).
The Riders have won two of their last three matches.
“The team is coming together and realizing they can accomplish their goals through focus, grit and hard play,” Stockton said.
Cross Country
Port Townsend’s Bradley finishes fifth at league meet
BREMERTON — Sophomore Ally Bradley was Port Townsend’s highest finisher at its Olympic League dual with Olympic and Kingston at the Kitsap County Fairgrounds.
Bradley placed fifth in the girls varsity race, running the 1.9-mile course in 13 minutes, 17 seconds, to lead the Port Townsend girls to a second place finish last Wednesday.
Kingston took first with 27 points. The Redhawks edged Olympic for second 47-52.
Juniors Ari Winter (eighth) and Amelia Grant (ninth) also placed in the top 10 for the Redhawks.
River Yearian paced a partial Port Townsend boys team with a 12th-place showing in the varsity race, finishing in 10:40.
Jake Vande Griend placed 15th, while Alejandro Montanez, Jesus Duran and Jacob Lundgren finished 17th through 19th.
In the boys JV race, Belgian exchange student Vincent Noirhomme, who was running his first-ever cross country race, placed eighth despite stopping to tie his shoe.
Next up for Port Townsend is another league dual with Klahowya and North Mason at Klahowya.
Sequim freshman ninth in Oregon
SEASIDE, Ore. — Sequim’s Ash Francis placed ninth in the 5-kilometer hard course at the Three Course Challenge over the weekend.
Francis, a freshman, was the Wolves’ highest hard course placer, finishing Saturday’s race in 19 minutes, 58 seconds.
Teammate Wendall Lorenzen placed 67th in the race.
Brendon Despain took fifth for Sequim in the 4,500-meter easy course with a time of 15:25. Chris Jeffko also placed in the top 10 for the Wolves, placing eighth with a time of 15:42.
In the boys 5K moderate course, C.J. Daniels took 17th and Christian Ash was 56th.
In the girls 5K hard course, Sequim’s Audrey Shingleton came in 40th with a time of 27:05.
Waverly Shreffler’s 22:30 earned third in the 5K moderate course, and Kiara Pierson placed 38th for the Wolves on the 4,500-meter easy course with a time of 21:01.