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State openers test for North By KRIS HENRY North Medford's Class 4A state title hopes in boys tennis suffered a big blow Thursday as only one of its singles players prevailed during the state tournament's opening round at Tualatin Hills Tennis Center in Beaverton. Scott Schnugg topped Spencer Straub of Rex Putnam 6-2, 6-3 in his opening match, but Deryk Inn wasn't as fortunate in a 2-6, 4-6 loss to Jason Menke of Westview. Ranked in the top 5 for 16-year-olds, Straub kept Schnugg on his toes but simply wasn't enough to hold back the Black Tornado junior. "It was actually a very tough first round match to have," said North Medford coach Cary Collins. "(Straub) was a formidable opponent, but Scott just dominated." Schnugg will face Jesuit sophomore Ricky Humphries today in the second round. Inn had a similar challenge in his first round matchup, but unfortunately had a different outcome than Schnugg. "Deryk just drew a tough opponent," said Collins. "That's just the luck of the draw. There's nothing you can do about it." After a slow start, Inn started to come on strong in the second set before the Westview senior finally sent him to the consolation bracket. The Black Tornado senior will take another shot at earning points for his team's cause today against Logan Egbert of Churchill. In other local boys tennis action, Zack Matthews of South Medford fell to Kyle Hammans of Churchill 2-6, 2-6 in the singles subtournament qualifier and was eliminated from the tournament. Crater junior Noah Lichtenstein also dropped his first round singles match, with Sheldon freshman Arron Spencer gaining a 6-2, 6-2 decision. Lichtenstein will play Tualatin freshman Brett Reis today in the consolation bracket. The North Medford girls tennis team posted results similar to their Black Tornado counterparts, with freshman Jenny Brown winning her singles opener but senior Leslie Schultz falling shy in her first singles match at Mount Hood Community College. Brown's nerves got the best of her against Karina Lange of South Eugene before finally pulling out a 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 victory. "It was a little scary," North Medford coach Dale Jensen said of Brown's opening match. "Jenny really did a nice job pulling her game together. I was very impressed. She's maturing very quickly." Schultz got off to a slow start against seventh-seeded Ashley Campbell of South Salem and lost 2-6, 6-7. The North Medford senior trailed 4-1 in the second set before mounting a comeback that eventually fell short. "The experience of the other girl being a senior and being there before really made a difference," Jensen said of Schultz's opener. Brown advances to the second round and will face Cori Ludwig of Crescent Valley today, while Schultz will play Megan Sono of Centennial in today's consolation round. Klamath Union freshman Alli Wilson had little trouble handling Jesuit's Monica Young in the first round, winning 6-3, 6-1. Wilson has a stiff test today in top-seeded Tara Livesay of Lakeridge. If she should upset Livesay, and Brown tops Ludwig, the two Southern Oregon Conference rivals would meet in the next round. Brown posted her first-ever win over Wilson to gain the district title. The Black Tornado freshman dropped her only encounter this season with Livesay. Regardless of the odds, Jensen said he is confident in Brown's abilities heading into the coming rounds. "Jenny wasn't playing nearly as well as she is now," Jensen said of her earlier losses. "She's playing at the top of her game right now." Elisa Tryon of Roseburg dropped her singles subtournament tilt with Bekka Carlson of Willamette, 3-6, 4-6, and was eliminated from the state tourney. Doubles play for boys and girls begins today. The tournament concludes Saturday. Today's Sports Index Mail Tribune Copyright� The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, OR U.S.A.