ROCHELLE — There may not have been many victories for the Lady Hubs varsity tennis team this season, but head coach Lizzie Cartwright is optimistic about the future of the Rochelle girls tennis program.

While the Lady Hubs finished 0-17 on the season, Rochelle saved one if its best performances for last, placing seventh out of 10 teams in the IHSA Class 1A Sectional at Rochelle Township High School behind senior Jasmin Galvan, who advanced to the third round of singles competition.

Galvan was one of six seniors who suited up for the varsity team this season. Alex Nava also led Rochelle in singles, while four players including Raquel Montelongo, Marissa Belmonte, Lillian Fulgencio and Anahi Calderon battled in doubles.

“The girls did their best,” Cartwright said. “The competition they faced was just at a higher level…I’m really going to miss the seniors. They really worked hard at being good role models for the underclassmen. They were really approachable, and they were really friendly and accepting of other girls.”

The Lady Hubs will graduate most of their players in the spring, but a handful of girls could return in 2018 including juniors Jasmine Rissman and Ashlynn Leininger, who earned a doubles point in Rochelle’s 3-2 loss to Streator earlier this season. Junior Lila Roush and sophomore Kate Monfils are also eligible to come back, and both players showed plenty of promise this fall.

“I had them play in singles against Rockford Lutheran, and I had them at doubles a lot this season, but I was pleasantly surprised how focused they were in singles,” Cartwright said. “I don’t know what the lineup will look like next year, but they’re both pretty athletic and they’re quick so I think they might step into the No. 1 and No. 2 singles spots.”