Before taking the court Thursday against Manhattan’s Nikki DePaola, Lawrence High senior tennis player Amy Bullerman told her coach she was born ready.

That was an understatement. Bullerman won her match 8-2, leading the Lions to an 8-1 victory at Lawrence Tennis Center.

Manhattan, which sent six players to the match instead of the usual eight, notched its only victory in No. 3 doubles. The Lions won doubles 2-1, and pulled out a clean 6-0 sweep in singles.

“With league and regionals approaching, we figured we had to step it up,” Bullerman said. “Manhattan’s not as dominant as some of the other teams in the league, but it’s good to get out here, get the win and get your confidence up.”

Seniors Shannon Wanna and Katie Robertson led the Lions in doubles, dominating the Indians’ No. 1 doubles duo of DePaola and Heidi Wetzel, 8-3. Wanna and Robertson have benefited from a bungee cord coach Dick Wedel attaches between them in practice. As a result, the pair covered the entire court effectively, and their aggressiveness at the net was too much for Manhattan to handle.

In singles, most of the Lions’ victories were blowouts. The only close match was in No. 4 singles, where Lawrence’s Lily Boyce battled back from deficits of 3-0 and 4-1 for an 8-6 win.

“A win’s a win, and we played well,” Wedel said. “I was especially thrilled with Lily Boyce. She came back and won with some good, hard play. When she got even, I told her to concentrate on the footwork, and that is what will win the match.”

The win was an opportune tuneup for the Lions for their next action at 3:30 p.m. Monday at Free State.

FSHS prevails at Blue Valley

Stilwell — The Free State High tennis squad doubled up Blue Valley, 6-3, Thursday in a dual. The Firebirds’ losses came at No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 singles. Jamie McGovern, Julia Guard and Joanna Loewen each won singles matches for FSHS, then the Firebirds won all three doubles matches.

FSHS travels Saturday to Emporia.