THE MEET: The 20th Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Girls Team Tennis Tournament will be held Friday and Saturday, Oct. 25-26. 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 at 9 a.m. Saturday. Admission is $6 for adults and students.
THE DIVISION 1 MATCH-UPS:
Division 1 - Quarterfinals (5:30 p.m. Oct. 25)
Match-1: Homestead (23-1) vs. Nicolet (14-7)
Match-2: Green Bay Southwest (25-3) vs. Middleton (18-1)
Match-3: Eau Claire Memorial (23-0) vs. Neenah (11-1)
Match-4: Burlington (18-5) vs. Divine Savior Holy Angels (16-5)
Division 1 - Semifinals (9 a.m. Oct. 26)
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. 26)
Match-7: Winner of Match 5 vs. Winner of Match 6
THE DIVISION 2 MATCH-UPS:
Division 2 - Semifinals (9 a.m. Oct. 26)
Match-1: Newman Catholic (19-2) vs. University School (12-7)
Match-2: Regis (19-4) vs. Edgewood (18-3)
Division 2 - Championship (2 p.m. Oct. 26)
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 package is scheduled to air on FS Wisconsin Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 7:30 p.m. The State Girls Individual Tennis Tournament highlight program will air on FS Wisconsin Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 7 p.m.
LAST YEAR: Homestead continued its impressive run in Division 1 by winning its fifth consecutive team championship. The Highlanders downed Divine Savior Holy Angels 4-3 in the championship match by winning three of the four singles matches and adding a victory at #1 doubles. University School won the Division 2 title for the second year in a row by defeating Edgewood 4-3 in the championship match. The Wildcats won three of the four singles matches and the #2 doubles match to earn their sixth team 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: Five-time defending champion Homestead is making its ninth tournament appearance and its sixth in a row. In addition to the five titles, the Highlanders also recorded back-to-back runner-up finishes in 2002-03. Last year’s runner-up Divine Savior Holy Angels is making its fifth consecutive appearance and its seventh overall. The Dashers have won a pair of State titles. The first came in 2001 and then again in 2004. Nicolet is making its 10th appearance overall since the dual meet format was established and its fourth in the last five years. The Knights have won six team tournament 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. Green Bay Southwest will be appearing in the tournament for the 19th time, the most of any member school since the dual-match format began. The Trojans won the Division 1 title in 1997 and finished runner-up in 2010. Eau Claire Memorial is making its fourth straight appearance and its 15th overall. The Old Abes have finished runner-up four times (1998, 1999, 2001, 2004). Neenah is making its 11th overall appearance and its second in a row. The Rockets best outcome in the State Team Tournament came with a runner-up finish in 2000. They also finished runner-up on two other occasions (1983, 1986) prior to the dual-match format. Middleton has qualified for the sixth time and for the fourth straight season. The Cardinals’ furthest advance at State were to the semifinals in 2010. Burlington qualifies for State for the first time.
ABOUT THE DIVISION 2 FIELD: Two-time defending champion University School will seek its seventh State team championship. The Wildcats are appearing in their 10th team tournament, all coming consecutively since 2004. They won four straight titles from 2004-07 and finished runner-up in 2008 and 2009. Last year’s runner-up Edgewood makes its fifth straight appearance in the State Tournament field and its seventh overall. In addition to last season, the Crusaders have had runner-up finishes in 2004 and 2010. Regis is making its fourth straight appearance in the State Team Tournament, which also accounts for the Lady Ramblers overall total. They are looking to advance past the semifinal round for the first time. Newman Catholic will participate in the State Team Tournament for the first time.
LAST WEEK: Freshman Lexi Keberle of West Bend East defeated two-time defending champion Elizabeth Konon of Homestead to win the Division 1 State singles title with a 6-4, 0-6, 6-3 victory. The top-seeded doubles tandem of Shelby and Tilly Chorney of Waunakee claimed the Division 1 doubles championship with at 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 decision over second-seeded Mardee Merar and Katya Mikhailanko of Homestead. Top-seeded Grace Larrain of Newman Catholic captured the Division 2 singles title. She defeated second-seeded Jenna Zimmerman of Racine St. Catherine’s in the final 7-6 (6), 6-2. In Division 2 doubles play, Julie Veitinger and Taylor Benard of University School notched a 6-4, 6-3 victory as the third seed over top-seeded Maddy Brown and Hayley Clope of Racine St. Catherine’s in the final.
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.