The Niles tennis team is learning on the fly.

With so many new players, veteran Vikings’ coach Jill Weber knows she is going to have to be patient with her team.

But as the Vikings were hosting their annual tournament Thursday, she said she has been pleased with the effort and how quickly the players are picking up the game.

And that includes a pair of female softball players — Addison Davies and Brooke Timm — who joined the team this fall.

“We have a lot of new players who have never played before, so they have been stepping it up and learning the game quickly,” Weber said. “We had a really good match against Kalamazoo Central yesterday (Wednesday). It came down to the one, two and three doubles having to win. They all went three set tiebreaks and we ended up winning.

“I have never done that before (have female players on the boys tennis team). They are both softball players and I have been pleasantly surprised with how well they fit in. They are just part of the team and they have been battling.”

The Vikings are 1-2-1 so far in the young season in dual matches, including that tie with Kalamazoo Central and a victory over Battle Creek Central.

Results and photos from Thursday’s invitational will appear online at leaderpub.com.