The Rock Bridge boys tennis team defeated Belleville (Ill.) West 4-2 and Triad High School 6-0 Thursday at Troy, Ill., in the inaugural Missouri-Illinois Challenge. The Bruins improved to 18-0 on the season.
Rock Bridge, paired with Clayton High School in St. Louis for the Missouri representatives, won the challenge with a record of 2-1-1 in duals against the Illinois teams.
According to Bruins coach Ben Leob, the dual match against Belleville West was one of the most contested matches the Bruins have had this season. Ford Zitch and Aaron Skinner won their singles matches while the No. 1 and No. 2 doubles teams lost their matches in match tiebreakers. The No. 3 and No. 4 teams won their matches to capture the win for the Bruins.
"It was an intense dual meet, it was really close," Leob said. "It was great to see the team come through."
Saturday, the Bruins host the North Central Missouri Invitational against Clayton and Kirkwood at Bethel Park.