McPHERSON — Great Bend High School finished tied for second place with Winfield, just behind host McPherson and ahead of Newton, Derby, Salina South and Hays on Tuesday during the season-opening McPherson Invitational.
“Our team played extremely well in the cold and wind,” GBHS head coach Shannon Schartz said. “They were coming off spring break, with two of our players spending the week in Washington D.C. with the (GBHS) choir.”
Great Bend’s Nick Moyers finished in fifth place out of 15 singles players. He defeated Salina South’s Kevin Kraus, 8-1; defeated Salina South’s Matt Berneking, 8-5; and defeated Winfield’s Avery Osen, 8-6.
Moyers’ only loss was to eventual champion Yannik Rivera of Newton, 8-5. Rivera is a foreign exchange student from Germany.
Grant Harris of GBHS finished in seventh place. He defeated Hays’ Cody Brown, 8-7 (7-2); lost to Winfield’s Chad Olney, 8-4; lost to Winfield’s Avery Olsen, 8-6; and beat Salina South’s Matt Berneking, 8-4.
Great Bend’s Austin Jacobs and Chase Buntain finished in third place out of 14 doubles teams. They defeated Newton, 8-2; defeated Winfield, 8-5; lost to eventual champion McPherson, 8-0; and beat Salina South, 8-2.
Adam Neeland and Patrick McCluskey of GBHS finished in ninth place in No. 2 doubles.
They lost to Salina South,  8-4; defeated Hays, 8-1; and beat Winfield, 8-3.

                                                           — Mack McClure