Peter Dindinger – NMMI Sports Press

Braving the chilly temperatures under an overcast sky, the New Mexico Military Institute tennis squads began the season with the all-day Goddard Invitational on Friday.

The Colts came away with an 8-1 victory over Goddard, followed by a 7-2 win over Clovis to land in the championship round at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the NMMI Courts.

NMMI will play the winner of the Lovington-St. Michael’s match.

“It’s tough when you’re playing that first tournament of the year and you’re not sure what you’re gonna face,” said NMMI head coach John Barbour. “We kind of struggled as we trailed off here near the end.

“Hopefully they’ll come back ready to go tomorrow morning, but I’m proud of the work they put in. We’ve definitely got our work cut out for us, but I’m happy and looking forward to tomorrow.”

Over at Goddard, the Lady Colts fell to the Lady Rockets, 8-1. Morgan Lynch tallied the only win for NMMI over Allison Lara in straight sets by the scores of 6-3 and 6-4.

The Lady Colts played Clovis in the consolation round Friday afternoon, but the final score wasn’t reported on press time.

“The kids are cold. I told them they’re gonna face this team at least two or three more times over the course of the season,” Barbour said. “We’ve got a lot of young girls that are just learning and getting better.

“We’re just taking this as kind of a learning deal to get better. If we work hard in practice then hopefully by the end we’ll give them a run. It’s all about experience for these girls.”