Bulldog Tennis Wins 3 Moves to Championship Game
- RoMoAthletics
- Apr 10
- 5 min read
April 9th, 2026
It was a long first day at the Camdenton/Lebanon Team Tournament for the Bulldogs as they faced three opponents in Pool Play and came away with their win streak intact.
Now standing at 8-0 after defeating Camdenton, Columbia Independent, and Kirksville, the Bulldogs are back in the title game to once again square off with former Ozark Conference foe, the Lebanon Yellowjackets on Friday.
First Up, the 9-2 Camdenton Lakers
As has been the case all season, the Bulldogs would get off to a strong start in doubles, winning all three matches. When your opponents see an undefeated team, you know that you will be getting everyone's best shot. The Bulldogs maintained focus and competed for every single point.
Senior Keaton Renaud and Junior Kyle Robinson came out strong in Dubs 1 and put a lot of pressure on at the net. Coach Josh Vinyard felt their energy set the tone for the rest of the team.
“An 8-2 win over that doubles team was a really solid performance. I was especially proud of how different players stepped up and showed leadership in key moments.”
In singles, the Bulldogs were able to win four of six and get some separation. Coach Vinyard talked about the big strides that Senior Paxton Ledbetter has made and he wasn’t talking about his 6’7” frame. “His forehand attack from the baseline was really good in both singles and doubles.”
“We still have things to clean up, but it was a quality win over a really nice team.”
Handling Columbia Independent (1-1)
There was a lot of buzz at the match with as the Columbia Independent Doubles #1, led by returning All-Stater Wyatt Litton, beat Kirksville's Doubles #1, so this match-up with the Dubs 1 of the Dawgs was drawing attention.
Renaud and Robinson were up to the challenge as they executed the game plan of keeping it away from Litton, but would take opportunities to attack him when he let his guard down. This led to an 8-5 victory in their match-up.
Dubs 2 of Seniors Cam Brown and Ledbetter continued their strong play and won 8-1. Coach Vinyard is pleased how this duo’s chemistry continues to improve. “With Pax continuing to improve that hard first serve, Cam is taking advantage of it on the return of serve.”
Freshman Tristan Ace jumped up to the #6 and came away with a tough and hard fought 9-7 win in his varsity debut showing grit.
A Long Sunny Day Comes to a Close with Win Over Kirksville
The Kirksville Tigers came into the match with a 6-1 record and after two matches in the sun, the Bulldogs knew they would have their hands full. The Tigers are always well-coached and have a reputation of battling at every level.
It was the 5th and 6th matches of the day for both teams as they faced fatigue and tired legs heading into the last match of the day. Coach Vinyard was anxious to see how his team would respond.
“Even though we were a little worn down, our players handled that mental part well. We were able to push through some tired legs. It wasn’t perfect tennis, but it was gritty, disciplined, and showed the kind of toughness we’re trying to build right now with this group.”
Dubs 1 fell to the talented Tigers doubles team. Despite the loss, the pair came away with areas of focus to finish out the season.
It was an exciting Dubs 2 match as Brown and Ledbetter jumped out to a 4-0 but soon found themselves tied up at 5. The improving team showed no panic, regrouped and took control of the last 3 games to take the win, 8-5.
In Dubs 3, seniors Connor Johsnon and Jack Greenway played one of the better doubles #3 teams that they had faced all year. It was a back and forth match and they were able to grind out an 8-6 win.
In singles, Renaud faced off against a state ranked player. It was a back and forth battle throughout, when Renaud tweaked his ankle planting to return a shot. He was able to battle through but came up just short in a match-up of two high level players.
Robinson was challenged by a non-traditional style at #2 who chose to push the pace of play. Robinson responded and was able to find separation at the end of the match for the win.
Vinyard put the Ace out there again for the #6 match and recorded another win. “He has made some strides with his ground strokes and just needs more experience against different styles of play. He got some of that today, and I am really happy for him.”
Wrap Up
Great weather and great performance in singles and doubles through a long day of games. The Bulldogs swept pool play - the 6th consecutive year of doing so. 18-0 in pool play over six years is a lot of consistency from a lot of different players of those years.
It will be a big time match-up in the Championship against Lebanon. They have won the last two match-ups against the Bulldogs in this tournament so the Bulldogs are ready for the rematch.
Next Up
The Bulldogs will play Lebanon in the Championship on Friday April 10th.
Pool Play Match #1 @ Camdenton HS
Rolla Defeats Camdenton, 7-2
Doubles
Keaton Renaud & Kyle Robinson defeat Fischer Richey & Alex Hendon, 8-2
Cameron Brown & Paxton Ledbetter defeat Carson Stoufer & Case Brown, 8-5
Connor Johnson & Jack Greenway defeat Nobel Mallahan & Ian Keniston, 9-7
Singles
Keaton Renaud defeats Fischer Richey, 8-6
Kyle Robinson falls to Alex Hendon, 1-8
Cameron Brown defeats Carson Stoufer, 8-3
Paxton Ledbetter defeats Nobel Mallahan, 8-3
Connor Johnson defeats Case Brown, 8-5
Logan Dunn falls to Ian Keniston, 6-8
Pool Play Match #2 @ Camdenton HS
Rolla Defeats Columbia Independent, 8-1
Doubles
Keaton Renaud & Kyle Robinson defeat Wyatt Litton & LoganSinquefield, 8-5
Cameron Brown & Paxton Ledbetter defeat Ethan Abadi & Simeon Casey, 8-1
Connor Johnson & Jack Greenway defeat Thomas Wood & Grant L, 8-3
Singles
Keaton Renaud falls to Wyatt Litton, 1-8
Kyle Robinson defeats LoganSinquefield, 8-3
Cameron Brown defeats Thomas Wood, 8-3
Paxton Ledbetter defeats Simeon Casey, 8-0
Connor Johnson defeats Ethan Abadi, 8-1
Tristan Ace defeats Ethan Cody, 9-7
Pool Play Match #3 @ Camdenton HS
Rolla Defeats Kirksville, 6-3
Doubles
Keaton Renaud & Kyle Robinson fall to Quinton Dorrell & Cedric Cook, 4-8
Cameron Brown & Paxton Ledbetter defeat John Quinn & Ameer Rahman, 8-5
Connor Johnson & Jack Greenway defeat Elliot Jennings & Caden Xander, 8-6
Singles
Keaton Renaud falls to Quinton Dorrell, 5-8
Kyle Robinson defeats Cedric Cook, 8-6
Cameron Brown falls to John Quinn, 3-8
Paxton Ledbetter defeats Elliot Jennings, 8-3
Connor Johnson defeats Ameer Rahman, 8-4
Tristan Ace defeats Caden Xander, 8-5
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