THE MEET:  The 21st Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Girls Team Tennis Tournament will be held Friday and Saturday, Oct. 24-25. The meet takes place at the Nielsen Tennis Stadium on the University of Wisconsin campus in Madison, Wis. Action will begin at 5:30 p.m. Friday and will resume Saturday at 9 a.m. Admission is $6 for adults and students.

THE DIVISION 1 MATCH-UPS:

Division 1 - Quarterfinals (5:30 p.m. Oct. 24)
Match-1:  Middleton (17-4) vs. Brookfield East (19-4)
Match-2:  Neenah (15-0) vs. Badger (12-4)
Match-3:  Eau Claire Memorial (23-1) vs. Arrowhead (15-0)
Match-4:  Notre Dame (10-7) vs. Nicolet (16-7) 

Division 1 - Semifinals (9 a.m. Oct. 25)
Match-5:  Winner of Match 1 vs. Winner of Match 2
Match-6:  Winner of Match 3 vs. Winner of Match 4

Division 1 - Championship (2 p.m. Oct. 25)
Match-7:  Winner of Match 5 vs. Winner of Match 6

THE DIVISION 2 MATCH-UPS:

Division 2 - Semifinals (9 a.m. Oct. 25)
Match-1:  Regis (16-3) vs. Edgewood (17-1) 
Match-2:  Baldwin-Woodville (16-0) vs. University School (14-2)

Division 2 - Championship (2 p.m. Oct. 25)
Match-3:  Winner of Match 1 vs. Winner of Match 2

BY THE NUMBERS:  There were 207 teams sponsoring girls tennis this fall with 135 in Division 1 and 72 in Division 2. The State Tournament field of teams is determined by team points recorded at the subsectional and sectional levels.

ON THE AIR:  The State Team Tennis Tournament highlight show is scheduled to air on FS Wisconsin  Wednesday, Nov. 26 at 10 p.m. The State Girls Individual Tennis Tournament highlight program will air on FS Wisconsin Wednesday, Nov. 19 at 9:30 p.m. Check your local listings for the channel in your area.

LAST YEAR:  Middleton won its first girls tennis team title by capturing the Division 1 championship with a 5-2 victory over  Eau Claire Memorial in the championship match. The Cardinals won three of the four singles matches and added victories at the #2 and #3 doubles flights. Edgewood won the Division 2 title to earn the school’s first girls tennis team title. The Crusaders posted a 4-3 win over two-time defending champion University School in the championship match. The Crusaders won three of the four singles matches and the #2 doubles match to earn the title.

THE HISTORY OF THE CHAMPIONSHIPS:  In Division 1, Nicolet has won six titles since the advent of the team championship dual format in 1994 and have won a membership-leading 17 titles. Brookfield Central has won three championships since the beginning of the dual format and nine overall. Whitefish Bay has won eight titles, including four Division 2 titles.

ABOUT THE DIVISION 1 FIELD:  Defending champion Middleton has qualified for the seventh time and for the fifth straight season. The Cardinals’ furthest advance at State prior to last year’s title was to the semifinals in 2010. Last season’s runner-up Eau Claire Memorial is making its fifth straight appearance at State and its 16th overall. In addition to last season’s runner-up finish, the Old Abes have placed second four times (1998, 1999, 2001, 2004). Neenah is making its 12th overall appearance and its third in a row. The Rockets’ best outcome in the State Team Tournament came with three runner-up finishes, the  most recent coming in 2000. They also finished runner-up on two other occasions (1983, 1986) prior to the dual-match format. Nicolet is making its 11th appearance overall since the dual meet format was established and its fifth in the last six years. The Knights have won six team championships, including three straight on two different occasions, from 1994-96 and from 1998-2000. Including the pre-team tournament era, they have been crowned team champions a membership-leading 17 times and finished runner-up eight times. Notre Dame is making its 10th appearance overall and its first since the 2011, which ended a five-year string of appearances. The previous nine experiences came in Division 2. The Tritons have won five State championships. The five-year run of appearances produced three straight titles from 2008-10. In addition, they made three straight appearances from 2001-2003 that produced championships in 2002 and 2003. They also had a runner-up finish in 2005. Brookfield East returns to State for the first time since making two consecutive appearances in 1994 and 1995.  The most notable of the Spartans’ appearances was advancing to the semifinals in 1994. Badger is making its second appearance after making its first in 2012 when the Badgers fell in the quarterfinal round. Arrowhead will be experiencing the team tournament for the first time.

ABOUT THE DIVISION 2 FIELD:  Defending champion Edgewood makes its sixth straight appearance in the State Tournament field and its eighth overall. In addition to the title they won last season, the Crusaders have had runner-up finishes in 2004, 2010 and 2012. Six-time champion University School seeks its seventh State team championship. The Wildcats finished runner-up last season, which came on the heals of back-to-back championships in 2011-12. They are appearing in their 11th team tournament, all coming consecutively since 2004. They also won four straight titles from 2004-07 and finished runner-up in 2008 and 2009. Regis is making its fifth straight appearance in the State Team Tournament, which also accounts for the Lady Ramblers’ overall total. They have yet to advance past the semifinal round.  Baldwin-Woodville will participate in the State Team Tournament for the first time.

LAST WEEK:  Sophomore Lexi Keberle of West Bend East won her second consecutive Division 1 singles championship by defeating second-seeded Emily Kolbow, a senior at Arrowhead, in the championship final 6-0, 6-3 victory. The top-seeded doubles tandem of sophomore Katya Mikhailenko and junior Anna Kreynin claimed the Division 1 doubles championship with a 6-1, 6-0 win over the sixth-seeded senior tandem of KK Doering and Lane McLaughlin of Divine Savior Holy Angels. Sophomore Claire Czerwonka of Kenosha St. Joseph captured the Division 2 singles title with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over top-seeded Tallie Piaskowski, a junior from Roncalli, in the final. In Division 2 doubles play, the sixth-seeded duo of senior Annie McGrail and freshman Meredith Heckert of Big Foot/Williams Bay recorded a 6-2, 6-3 triumph over  the fifth-seeded pair, senior Paige Moritz and junior Lindsey Thomas of Kenosha St. Joseph,  in the championship final.

NEED INFORMATION?:  Rosters and records of teams in the State Tournament are available on the WIAA website at www.wiaawi.org and accessing the girls tennis homepage. Results will also be available online on the girls tennis homepage.

FOLLOW STATE MEET ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Receive updates of the State Girls Tennis Team Tournament on the WIAA State Tournament Twitter account @wiaawistate with the hashtag #wiaatennis. Also follow daily recaps on Facebook.