Hiser, Hosier help North tennis All-Stars past South
Jun. 13—PENDLETON — After so many high school tennis victories as teammates, it was fitting Alexandria seniors Reiley Hiser and Gracyn Hosier would wrap up their careers by contributing to the winning side once again.
The No. 1 and No. 2 singles players for the Central Indiana Conference, Madison County and sectional champion Tigers each scored one singles match victory to help the North team defeat the South 28-19 at the 23rd Annual North-South Senior All-Star Tennis Cup held Sunday at the Community Sports and Wellness Center in Pendleton.
Alexandria's Matt DeVault was also on hand as one of the coaches for the North team. He said the two players deserved the honor after helping complete the aforementioned trifecta in both 2019 and 2021.
"Anytime you have even one player make it, it's an honor," DeVault said. "Then, to have two get a chance to, it just shows what kind of seniors we have and the success that they have had."
The event featured three rounds of singles and doubles matches, interviews with the players conducted by Mount Vernon coach Gabe Muterspaugh, and guest speaker Rebecca Matler, who won a doubles state championship at Center Grove in 2006 and went on to play at Bellarmine. The first two rounds were standard one-set matches with the final round played to 10.
Hosier had a penchant this season for being involved in the longer matches, frequently going to three sets and over two hours. While there was no chance of that happening, her first match was won in a tiebreaker, 7-6 (7-4) over Maely Barrett of Mooresville.
"I knew it was coming," Hosier said. "I said, 'This thing is going to a tiebreaker.'"
"She always wins them, so we can't complain," Hiser quipped.
Hiser closed her day with a 10-7 win over Devin Cooney from Franklin Central and said she was glad to have her basketball and tennis teammate also participating.
"I was actually really happy that Gracyn got to come, too," Hiser said. "Not that I'm shy, but I don't like meeting new people sometimes."
The balance of the day was played in doubles, including one match played together.
In the first round, Hiser played with Hallie Mast of Westview, and the duo lost to Haylie Rayl of Franklin Community and Sarah Scott from Whiteland 6-4 before she paired up with Hosier in a 6-3 loss to Barrett and Cooney.
In the final round, Hosier was paired with Mast, but they fell to Barrett and Sapna Vyas from Center Grove 10-7.
"It was fun. It was a different change of pace, I guess," Hosier said. "I haven't played doubles in two years. It was cool."
"I liked it because it's kind of preparing me for college," said Hiser, who will be playing at Indiana University-Kokomo next year. "I've only met one of those girls, but I got to play with all of them, so I liked it."
Both players were happy to play together one more time in the conclusion to their high school careers.
"We've been playing since elementary school, so it's cool to have that connection," Hosier said.
While Hiser will study Health Science at IU-K, Hosier will stay closer to home at Anderson University to study nursing. She has left the door open to possibly playing for the Ravens, depending upon the demands of her schedule.
No matter what lies ahead, DeVault said Hiser and Hosier are destined for success.
"I had both in class. They're great students. They're great athletes. They're great people," DeVault said. "They'll do whatever you ask them to do. That's why I won't be surprised when they have success at the next level. They are not afraid to work at it."
Contact Rob Hunt at rob.hunt@heraldbulletin.com or 765-640-4886.
