ROCHELLE — A three-set thriller at No. 1 doubles highlighted the Rochelle varsity girls tennis team’s season-opener against Belvidere on Thursday.

With all other varsity matches settled, Lady Hub seniors Jasmine Rissman and Ashlynn Leininger battled for the final point against Belvidere’s Anahi Rodriguez and Ivonne Aguilar. Rissman and Leininger rallied for a win in the second set to force a 10-game tiebreaker, but the Rochelle girls fell just short, falling by a final score of 4-6, 7-6, 9-11.

Despite the loss, head coach Lizzie Cartwright was impressed with the duo’s performance, and she’ll be looking for the seniors to maintain the same level of play when the Lady Hubs host Princeton on Monday at 4:30 p.m.

“Our seniors are really great role models,” Cartwright said. “They work very hard and they know how to have fun… That was the best I’ve ever seen Ashlynn and Jasmine play, and even though they lost, I felt good about their effort yesterday. Hopefully they’ll bring that same effort and intensity against Princeton.”

Senior Lila Roush and junior Caitlin McMurray took the court at No. 1 and No. 2 singles for the Lady Hubs on Thursday. Roush fell against Belvidere’s Luzia Hernandez 0-6, 0-6 while McMurray (making her varsity debut) took one game against Belvidere’s Beau DeGennaro in a 1-6, 0-6 loss.

“I started Caitlin there because she’s quick on the court and I think she’s pretty tough mentally,” Cartwright said. “She doesn’t have to rely on a teammate to build herself up and she’s very focused. She plays with determination, and even though she took only one game, she was playing a lot of deuces. We’re definitely going to be working harder in practice.”

Junior Ruth Gardner and freshman MeLisa Young each made their first-ever varsity starts at No. 2 doubles on Thursday, falling against Belvidere’s Allison White and Kiana Staton 0-6, 0-6. Sophomores Mindy Pelayo and Melanie Gonzalez, also first-time varsity players, fell against Belvidere’s Emily Lira and Makayla Medina 0-6, 0-6. Rochelle is now 0-1 overall.

“Coach [Jeff Truckenbrod] and I are trying to teach the girls about tennis strategy and other skills,” Cartwright said. “This will definitely be a building year for us with so many new freshmen.”

Emma Hicks and Jordin Dickey played No. 1 and No. 2 singles at the junior varsity level on Thursday, falling by respective scores of 2-8 and 3-8. Sawyer McGee and Txell Samaranch lost 0-8 at No. 1 doubles while Riley Flanagan and Yoana Fulgencio fell 1-8 at No. 2 doubles. Jocelyn Robles and Arlette Garcia lost 1-8 at No. 3 doubles.