St. Joseph’s, Ladue, Westminster Among State Standouts

The Missouri high school girls’ tennis season came to a close in late October, with the Cooper Tennis Complex in Springfield once again playing host to all the MSHSAA state tournament action.

While historically the Missouri State High School Activities Association state championship has consisted of two classes, the organization tacked on a third class last season and held the same three-class format this year, too. That’s resulted in teams and individuals competing against atypical opponents and more state champions being crowned than ever before.

The state team tournament for all three classes was held October 22-23 at Cooper. The individual portion of the state championships for both singles and doubles took place the preceding weekend of October 14-16.

Class 3

St. Joseph’s Academy in St. Louis steamrolled its way to a 17th state title, as the Angels did not lose a single court en route to the championship. St. Joseph’s topped MICDS — another dominant St. Louis-area program that was seeking its eighth state championship — by a 5-0 scoreline in the title match. The Angels most recently won state in 2019.

St. Teresa’s Academy in Kansas City bested KC’s Park Hill 5-1 to claim third place. Lafayette, Central High School in Springfield, Lee’s Summit West and Rock Bridge qualified for the quarterfinals before being eliminated.

In singles action, John Burroughs School senior Emily Kantrovitz capped her prep career with a 6-0, 6-4 victory over Parkway South’s Khayli Buckels inside at Cooper to win the title. Kantrovitz toppled St. Joseph’s Abby Gaines 7-5, 6-1 in the semifinals while Buckels beat Rock Bridge’s Maggie Lin 6-2, 6-2 in the other semi. Sahana Madala of John Burroughs also medaled with a fifth-place finish.

On the doubles side, Ellie Choate of St. Joseph’s was one match short of becoming the first player in Missouri history to win four consecutive girls’ doubles championships. Choate and senior Bella Hong fell 6-2, 6-0 to Aliya Rector and Leisana Rector of Lee’s Summit West in the final.

Kickapoo’s tandem of Brynley Brotherton and Esther Choe made the semifinals, as did St. Teresa’s Meredith Mason and Ellen Mason. MICDS’s Mikaela Mikulec and Rachel Li won the consolation title after narrowly falling to eventual titlists Rector/Rector 3-6, 6-4, 10-8.

Class 2

Barstow in Kansas City was the dominant force on the Class 2 scene, winning both the singles and doubles championships along with the team title. The Knights actually qualified both finalists in the doubles tournament. Barstow beat Ladue 5-0 in the team title match.

Ladue earned its way to the final by way of a 5-1 victory over Grain Valley. Barstow defeated Parkway Central 5-2 in the other semifinal, which was the closest anyone got to the Knights on their march to the championship. Parkway Central finished third with a 5-2 win over Grain Valley. Cor Jesu Academy, Glendale, Carl Junction and Capital City also made the Elite 8.

Barstow’s Sarena Biria dropped just a single game in four state matches to capture the championship. Lincoln Prep’s Leilani Payton finished as runner-up after one of the best-ever showings from a player representing the KC-area school. Ladue’s Megan Ouyang finished in third, Jefferson City’s Sandhiya Baskar got fourth and Cor Jesu’s Elena Davis earned a fifth-place medal.

The Barstow tandem of Atra Biria and Phoebe Martin bested teammates Mary Colombo and Lia Adams in straight sets to grab the Class 2 doubles title. Two Parkway Central teams advanced to the semifinals — Chava Hahn/Hayley Lerner (third place) and Brenna McLain/Maggie Huff (fourth place). Cor Jesu’s Katie Cooper and Katie Pekic won the consolation title.

Class 1

Kennett High School in southeastern Missouri clipped Westminster Christian Academy of St. Louis 5-4 in a state championship thriller to win the title. Kennett snagged its first-ever girls’ state championship. Westminster was also seeking its first and came within a match tiebreaker of accomplishing the feat. It was still the best finish in the history of the Wildcats’ program.

Westminster knocked off St. Joseph LeBlond 5-0 in one semifinal, while Kennett defeated Bolivar 5-3 in the other. Bolivar shut out St. Joseph LeBlond in the third-place matchup. North County, Helias Catholic, Harrisonville and Clayton also reached the quarterfinals.

Whitfield senior Elli Rose earned the school’s first-ever girls’ tennis state championship by virtue of a 6-2, 6-2 win over Duchesne’s M.K. Beckemeier. Rose completed a perfect season in singles play, as she didn’t drop a match the entire season. Clayton’s Aanya Singh bested Ursuline’s Maura Quigley 6-4, 6-2 in their third-place battle.

North County qualified both its tandems for the Class 1 doubles championship, as Lauren Politte/Hannah Politte defeated teammates Lucy Pace/Katelynne Jones 6-3, 7-6 in the finals. Avery Surber and Greta Larsen of Westminster took third place, slipping by Clayton’s Riley Reeves and Riley Zimmerman.