IOWA FALLS — The Webster City boys tennis team kicked off the season here Tuesday vs. Iowa Falls-Alden in North Central Conference action.

Nathan Wardell earned a win at the No. 1 singles spot, but the Lynx fell to the Cadets, 8-1.

“With so many freshman and first year players in the lineup I really didn’t know what to expect and was really excited just to set a baseline,” WCHS head coach Mark Fisher said. “We definitely came out with some nerves early, and made our share of mistakes, but what impressed me most was how much we improved over the course of each point, each set and each match.

“This group has been eager to learn and get better each day in practice, and that carried over to the first meet. So coachable, made great adjustments and competed. I’m excited to see how this group continues to grow.”

Wardell, a senior, topped Carter Zollar, 6-0, 6-0. He also paired up with Sage Bock to battle Zollar and Isaiah Nelson to a third-set tiebreaker at the No. 1 doubles spot, falling 6-2, 3-6, 12-10.

“Absolutely a great start for Nathan, as he has extremely bought in this year and wants to be great,” Fisher said. “Sage made great adjustments in singles and I was really impressed with the way Nathan and Sage bounced back in doubles after starting the match 0-3 and losing the first set.”

Blake Arjes, a freshman, pushed Ivan Kimesh to a third-set tiebreaker at the No. 4 singles spot, dropping a 5-7, 6-2, 10-2 decision.

Bock lost 6-4, 6-4 at No. 2 to Tristan Kappel in his varsity debut as a ninth-grader, as did Vincent Bittner by the same scores at No. 6 to Boaz Lehmann.

Webster City is scheduled to head to Osage on Thursday. The meet could be moved to April 17 if the forecast holds, as it calls for heavy rain.