Bulldogs Tennis Dominate on Thursday
- RoMoAthletics
- Apr 3
- 5 min read
April 2nd, 2026
After getting their home opener tennis match canceled due to rain, the Rolla Bulldogs Tennis squad was more than happy to hit the road and play indoors at the Cooper Tennis Complex in Springfield on Thursday.
The Bulldogs would see former conference foes, the Glendale Falcons and the Parkview Vikings in a tri match.
Bulldogs Put Away a Tough Glendale Team
The Bulldogs started off the tri match taking on the Glendale Falcons. The Falcons are a good team with a history of making plays on the court. The Bulldogs played well against the talented Falcons, and executed when it mattered to win those tough points throughout the entire match.
Coach Josh Vinyard was pleased with the focus his team showed. “We had quite a few of what we call "guts" points where you are either up 30-15 or down 15-30. We won the majority of those points and that helped us come out on top against a tough team.”
Doubles Sweep
It was a slug fest for Doubles #1 as Senior Keaton Renaud and Sophomore Kyle Robinson were pushed and had to battle through some long rallies on their way to the 8-6 victory.
Vineyard liked what he saw from his Doubles 1. “It was a very good early season win for this group and sets them up well for the Springfield invite in a few weeks.“
Cam Brown and Paxton Ledbetter jumped out early in Doubles #2 and took control. The pair was able to bring focus to their first serve thanks to the benefit of playing indoors. “It was either an ace or an easy volley at the net on quite a few points.” said Vinyard. It was a dominant 8-3 win for the two seniors.
In Doubles #3, seniors Connor Johnson and Jack Greenway cruised to an 8-2 victory. Coach Vinyard commented about this pair's continued growth as a duo and continued to improve their communication and ability to play off of each other's strengths.
“Jack did a great job of hitting his kick serve wide and allowed Connor to play to his strength putting the ball away at the net.”
Bulldog Singles go 5-1
After playing in a doubles match with long volleys, it didn’t get any easier for the Bulldog #1. Keaton had a really long and grueling match with their #1.
Despite playing well, Keaton found himself on the verge of losing his first match, trailing 5-7. The “gut points” Coach Vinyard mentioned were on full display as Keaton battled back.
He kept his composure and came back and took the last four games to win 9-7. Vinyard was proud of the grit shown by Renaud. “He played really well, but is still a ways from playing his best tennis.”
Kyle jumped out to a 4-1 lead in his singles match and played very well. His return of serve was next level and that helped him limit what his opponent could do offensively against him. He did a great job of attacking the net when he had good opportunities and finishing points.
In another gut check, Cameron Brown had to fight back after being down 4-5 to another talented player. Cam was able to adjust and play some longer volleys wearing down his opponent and getting the 8-6 win.
“His approach and mental toughness was the difference maker in his favor.” - Coach Vinyard on Cam Brown
Coach Vinyard was excited about the performance of Senior Logan Dunn at the #6 spot. He felt Dunn’s serve was on point and acknowledged how he played within himself and limited unforced errors.
Bulldogs Sink the Vikings Ship
The perfect conditions inside the Cooper Tennis Complex would be left behind as the Bulldogs had to move outside to take on the Parkview Vikings.
It might have seemed like stormy seas were ahead as the both teams were forced to battle less than ideal conditions with wind hitting speeds north of 30mph.
When competing in these types of conditions it was less about the game of tennis and more about the strategy on how to play the wind.
In all, it was a great learning experience, to grow their game but also the mental aspect of the game.
The Bulldogs dominated the Vikings on their way to an 8-1 victory.
The wind was particularly challenging for Keaton who has a high serve toss. Keaton’s usual dominant serve was hampered with having to adjust for the wind, and something when playing against a talented player like the Vikings Dax Barnhouse, will make for a long day.
Coach Vinyard recognized the toll that the back-to-back games took on Keaton when you consider the length of the two doubles matches and the single matches he played earlier. He had already competed for three hours before his finals single match which gave him his first loss of the season.
Next Up
Monday, April 6th at School of the Osage (4-2) at 4:00 pm
Tuesday, April 7th at home against Capital City (2-1) 4:00 pm
Thursday & Friday, April 9th & 10th at Camdenton/Lebanon Team Tournament at Camdenton
Pool Play against Camdenton (6-1) and Kirksville (4-0)
Match Results
Varsity Defeats Glendale, 8-1
Doubles
Keaton Renaud & Kyle Robinson defeat Lucas Squires & Rocco Macchi, 8-6
Cameron Brown & Paxton Ledbetter defeat Grayson Stenger & Jack Miller, 8-3
Connor Johnson & Jack Greenway defeat Dominic Colvin & Edward Munsey, 8-2
Singles
Keaton Renaud defeats Lucas Squires, 9-7
Kyle Robinson defeats Rocco Macchi, 8-2
Cameron Brown defeats Grayson Stenger, 8-6
Paxton Ledbetter falls to Jack Miller, 4-8
Connor Johnson defeats Dominic Colvin, 8-0
Logan Dunn defeats Edward Munsey, 8-3
Junior Varsity / Futures fall to Glendale JV, 0-2
Singles
Jr. Tristan Ace falls to Orion Hilles, 2-6
Jr. Loyal Davis falls to Orion Hilles, 0-6
Varsity Defeats Parkview, 8-1
Doubles
Keaton Renaud & Kyle Robinson defeat Dax Barnhouse & Alexander Barber, 8-1
Cameron Brown & Paxton Ledbetter defeat Landon Frans & Ellyon Murray, 8-0
Connor Johnson & Jack Greenway defeat Jack Moorehead & Caden Dishman, 8-0
Singles
Keaton Renaud falls to Dax Barnhouse, 5-8
Kyle Robinson defeats Landon Frans, 8-0
Cameron Brown defeats Alexander Barber, 8-0
Paxton Ledbetter defeats Jack Moorehead, 8-0
Connor Johnson defeats Caden Dishman, 8-0
Logan Dunn defeats Ellyon Murray, 8-1
Junior Varsity / Futures Defeats Parkview JV - 3-0
Doubles
1 Jr. Tristan Ace & Jr. Loyal Davis defeat Chris Bradfield & Kohle Eslick, 8-2
Singles
1 Tristan Ace defeats Darius Knowlton, 8-2Jack Greenway W 6-0
2 Loyal Davis defeats Chris Bradfield, 8-3
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