Mount Vernon junior Tallulah Norton doesn’t mess around on the tennis court.

“It sounds bad, but I like to get it done as soon as possible,” Norton said.

On Thursday, Norton took care of her singles opponent and the Mustangs went on to beat South Tama 7-2 at the Mount Vernon high school tennis courts.

Singles play started on a warm, calm afternoon and the f irst player off the courts was Norton, who beat Neveah Mathes at No. 3 singles, 8-1.

“Every time,” Mount Vernon Coach Cyrstal Eskelsen said. “She gets to work. Her warmup is always short. She does not talk to me, unless the other girl talks to her coach.

“She just goes to work. That’s not unusual.”

Norton said she just studies her opponent during the match and tries to cut down on her errors.

“I kind of watch how they like to receive my hits,” Norton said. “And where they are hitting.

“But don’t rush. Take your time. Stay calm.”

Having Norton at No. 3 singles is a luxury. In fact, the Mustangs tend to overpower teams because of their depth.

“Our girls are pretty even,” Eskelsen said. “We don’t drop off a lot from 2 to 6. So, we do have an advantage.”

Junior Ashtyn Rollinger can’t always get off the court as quickly as Norton. At No. 1 singles, she is always facing the best player from the other team.

“It is always the hardest spot to play,” Eskelsen said. “Ashtyn has played a lot of tough matches, and they have all been close.” Against South Tama, Hannah Houghton got the best of her, 8-6.

“She was really good at hitting shots to corners,” Rollinger said. “Her shots were fast. She was good at making me go back and forth.”

Then it came time to play doubles and the two top singles players faced off again. However, Houghton’s scheduled double partner, No. 2 singles player Nora Dye, a sophomore, had to run off to prepare for the school’s musical.

So freshman Emily Schnoor got thrown in. Because of the change, by rule, the Mustangs had to forfeit. But they played it out anyway, and the mismatched Mount Vernon duo came out on top.

“We had never played with each other before, but it ended up being all right,” Rollinger said. “We got to know each other a little more.”

Earlier in the week, Mount Vernon lost its first match, 8-1, at Camanche. It was a non-conference match against a traditional Class 1A power with longer matches.

“It was a long night,” Eskelsen said. ‘We played three third-set tiebreakers.”

Mount Vernon wrapped up a busy week with a 9-0 win Friday, April 25, at Maquoketa.

It is an odd year for girls’ tennis player around the state. Once the spring season finishes, they’ll have to get ready to play in the fall, since the IGHSAU changed when the sport is played for 2025-26.

“I’m actually okay with it,” Rollinger said. “But I think it’ll be really hot.”

Eskelsen doesn’t like the change, and may not continue coaching.

“We’ll lose some girls to fall sports, and cheer,” Eskelsen said.

For now, the Mustangs are 8-2 with the WaMaC Meet coming up on Tuesday, May 6, in Grinnell.

“Our team is doing pretty good,” Norton said. “We’re on a good streak and I feel like we can do better.”

“It is a good group of girls who are happy to be on the tennis court,” Eskelsen said. “That makes my job easier.”