Clarinda will send a singles player to the state tennis tournament, then turn around and host team regionals on its own courts — if the rain holds.
Activities Director Eli Bales said Chandy Nothwehr qualified Wednesday as a singles player for the state individual tournament Oct. 7-8 at Waukee Northwest. The Clarinda Cardinal Activities account posted the same news Wednesday evening.
It caps a second fall season for a program that Bales said just won the Hawkeye 10. John and Tasha Cole coach the Cardinals. Bales called them “Cole squared” — a husband-and-wife pair that has been in the program a long time and rebuilt after a large graduating class.
“We lost a lot of girls last year. But then we were able to rebound and come back and win a Hawkeye 10 title, which was really cool to see,” Bales said on the KCSI / KOAK School Update Thursday morning.
Saturday is the first time Clarinda has hosted team regionals. Bales listed the Cardinals as the No. 2 seed with a 9-1 dual record. The first match is Glenwood. If Clarinda wins, the winner of Shenandoah and Red Oak is next. Boone is the top seed.
