Lyle/Pacelli started its season-opening dual on the short end of a 3-0 score, and the girls' tennis team nearly pulled off the comeback in a 4-3 loss at Lake City Thursday night.

L/P and host Lake City decided to provide its players with the best challenges available, and L/P coach Suzy Hebrink put just five players in the lineup. The host Tigers held a 3-0 advantage before the meet even began, but L/P nearly swept the remaining four matches for the win.

Anna Hebrink, Sammi Jones and Gretchen Hebrink took singles victories for Lyle/Pacelli, but the No. 1 doubles tandem of Livja Burke and Laura Christopherson fell 6-1, 6-2 as L/P's only on-court loss.

"We were down 0-3 so we needed to win all four spots we were playing at, and we came close," Coach Hebrink said. "We certainly had a chance."

Jones played "literally flawless tennis," according to Coach Hebrink, in a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Lake City's Sammi Lafferty at No. 2 singles. Anna Hebrink handled Anna Dosen at No. 1 singles, 6-4, 6-2, and Gretchen Hebrink took the No. 3 singles match, 7-6 (7-3), 6-1.

Burke, a freshman, and Christopherson, a senior, were unable to make it 4-for-4.

"They just weren't aggressive enough as far as getting to the net," Coach Hebrink said, "but this was no doubt a good doubles team they were playing against."

The rest of L/P's tennis team played matches that did not count towards the varsity team scoring, but accounted for first-meet experience just the same.

Lyle/Pacelli played Saturday at the St. James Tournament before returning home to entertain Stewartville on Monday at 4 p.m. at the Austin Country Club tennis courts.