HORSHAM Lawn showed it will be one of the teams to beat in this year's Central Wimmera Tennis Association pennant competition by defeating reigning premier Kalkee at the weekend.
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The result went down to the wire, with Lawn winning on sets but Kalkee taking more games for the day.
From the outset it was clear the teams were well poised.
Horsham Lawn had the better of the opening doubles rubbers, with Stuart McRae and Graeme Wood downing Jeff Friberg and Dave Richardson 9-6.
The scoreline was replicated by Lawn ladies Kerrie Duxson and Maree Thompson, who beat Anna Lehmann and Carmen Petering.
Kalkee duo Grant Schultz and Travis Kerr were no match for Jae McGrath and Hugh Gove in a 9-1 loss, but Debbie Lawson and Trudi Schmidt broke through for Kalkee's first rubber in the women's doubles.
The tables began to turn in the singles section.
Friberg and Schultz lived up to their big reputations, beating McRae and McGrath respectively.
Lawson and Lehmann also won their singles rubbers to put Kalkee ahead five sets to three.
Everything was on the line as the doubles resumed, and both teams played like it.
Each of the final six rubbers were close, with a tiebreaker between Lawn's McGrath and Wood and Kalkee's Schultz and Dave Richardson ultimately deciding the match.
The win moved Horsham Lawn to second place on the ladder, joining St Michaels as the only other undefeated team after two rounds.
The other results were not as close, with the Saints and Central Park each posting big wins.
St Michaels romped to a 13-123 to 1-63 win against Drung South White.
It was a tough day at the office for Drung South White, which was overrun in many of its singles rubbers.
Mother-daughter pair Cath and Sacha McDonald were the only Drung South players to salute.
They overcame Saints Kassie Peachey and Melissa Hoffmann 9-6 to get their team a set.
Others came close, including Dylan Emmerson in his singles rubber against Ian Nitschke which he lost in a 9-8 tiebreak.
Sacha McDonald lost narrowly in her singles match with Peachey and two other doubles rubbers went to 9-7.
Drung South Blue fared little better than its White counterpart when it took on Central Park.
The Parkers cruised to a 12-118 to 2-58 win with their men leading the way.
Central Park's men did not drop a set, though Drung South's Ben Brooksby, Jack Ruwoldt, Craig Bergen and John Burford put up a decent fight.
Brothers Kye and Jase Chapple won their singles rubbers convincingly against Brooksby and Ruwoldt.
In the women's half of the draw, Drung's Vicki Ahilaras and Jodi Burford teamed up to give their team its first rubber of the day.
Ahilaras also won her singles rubber against Parker Amie Harrison to be Drung South Blue's best performer on the day.
