The Iola Mustangs opened the 2026 spring sports season Thursday by hosting the Iola High School Quad, featuring Independence, Parsons and Neodesha.
Without a No. 2 singles, and Iola’s No. 2 doubles team scratching in the final match due to not having an opponent, the Mustangs won four of eight matches despite facing bigger programs.
“We did pretty good today. We played some pretty good tennis,” Iola coach Chris Belknap said. “We had a guy filling in for us, but everyone had a really good time and got some wins.”
While other programs rested the first day of Spring Break, the Mustangs went to work.
Sophomore No. 1 singles Mosiah Fawson swept the competition with a trio of victories. He opened with an 8-1 victory over Independence’s David Mitchell, then went on to defeat Parsons’ Prince Laserna 8-6 and ended the night with an 8-1 victory over Jack DeLong of Neodesha.
“The first two matches were pretty easy, but the third one, I had to focus, lock in and play tennis,” Fawson said. “At the beginning, especially in my first two matches, the wind was really bad. On each side of the court, I had to adjust and switch sides.”
The experience, Fawson said, leaves him feeling “ready for bigger meets.”
Iola’s senior duo of Brody Thompson and Trapper Boren picked up a win in their team debut. They opened with an 8-4 loss to Quinlan Boyer and Caven Jabben of Independence. Boren and Thompson rebounded with an 8-4 victory over Micky Manners and Dylan Semones of Parsons before ending the night with an 8-7 victory over Neodesha’s J’Vonte White and Alex Morrowuin.
“Tennis comes naturally for some of them, but they work hard,” Coach Belknap said. “They drive each other to work hard. It’s good to have some motivated kids.”
In No. 2 doubles, freshmen Logan Belknap and Maddux Franklin took a pair of losses but still did some damage. They fell to Indy’s Harlin Bagley and Draven Anderson 8-1 in their opener, then fell 8-3 to A.J. Pontious and Carson Riley of Parsons. Neodesha did not field a No. 2 doubles team.
“We had a couple of freshmen out here today, who have never played before,” Belknap said. “They did a really good job. It got exciting. They got into a match and went back and forth like 20 times. They were playing pretty even.”
Without a No. 2 single set for the tournament, Avry Brockway of Independence filled in for Iola. Brockway fell to teammate Nolan Carnes 8-1 in the opener, then defeated Colin Ray 8-6 of Parsons before falling to Neodesha’s Lauklon Roebuck in his final match 8-1.
After a strong debut, the Mustangs will join their fellow IHS students for Spring Break and not return to the court until the March 30 Independence Invitational. Although Iola Coach Belknap believes his team has plenty of room to improve in the next 18 days, he liked what he saw Thursday.
“It’s going to be a good season. These guys work well and practice hard,” Coach Belknap said. “We’re going to have a good season and play some good tennis. I’m looking forward to it.”
