STATE TOURNAMENT PREVIEW
TOURNAMENT FACTS
What: The 47th annual individual state girls tennis tournament. When: Thursday-Saturday. Where: Nielsen Tennis Stadium, Madison. Schedule: 10:30 a.m. Thursday, first-round matches; 9 a.m. Friday, play through quarterfinals; 9 a.m. Saturday, championship semifinals followed by finals. 2016 champions: Division 1 singles – Emily Luetschwager, Stevens Point; Division 2 doubles – Christina Price and Kiki Risgaard, Neenah. Division 2 singles – Claire Czerwonka, Kenosha St. Joseph; Division 2 doubles – Abby Fox and Maddie Molitor, Madison Edgewood.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
DIVISION 1 SINGLES Autumn Bruno, fr., Whitnall (22-0): Bruno is the school’s first state singles qualifier since 2003. She rallied from one set down and fought off a match point to beat Divine Savior Holy Angels’ Logan White in the sectional final. Emily Horneffer, jr., Brookfield East (15-6): The firsttime qualifier has been a tough out late in the season. A 10th seed, she pushed DSHA’s Logan White to three sets after a straight-set loss a week earlier and then rallied from one set down to beat Brookfield Central’s Sasha Semina for third place at the sectional. Sasha Semina, sr., Brookfield Central (15-6): Injuries have slowed her this season, but the No. 8 seed brings experience to state. She reached the third round the past two seasons. Andie Weise, soph. Homestead (32-0): The North Shore champion is the top returner in the field with a third-place finish last year. She earned the No. 1 seed and has been pushed to three sets just once this season. Logan White, jr., DSHA (21-3): The Greater Metro champion’s only losses came to Weise and Bruno, though she did take Weise to three sets in early September. She finished fifth last year and advanced to the third round as a freshman. DIVISION 1 DOUBLES Frankie La Londe, sr., and Alyssa Boyer, sr., Homestead (30-2): La Londe finished third last year with a different partner. This year the Highlanders' top team is the No. 2 seed behind Neenah senior twins Hannah and Amanda Dorsey, who handed La Londe and Boyer one of their losses. The other setback came to a Whitefish Bay tandem that isn’t playing together in the postseason. Annabelle Crowley, jr., and Emma Koppa, jr., Nicolet (15-4): Both players reached state last year with different partners. Crowley was part of a team that was state runnerup last season; Koppa reached the quarterfinals. This year they’re the No. 3 seed behind Homestead’s Boyer and La Londe and the Dorseys from Neenah. Crowley and Koppa took both teams to three sets this year before losing. Amanda Skonieczny, sr., and Hailey Haws, soph., Cedarburg (28-3): The two won two matches at state last season as a No. 11 seed. This year they’re seeded fourth with losses only to their North Shore rivals from Homestead and Nicolet. DIVISION 2 SINGLES Olivia Czerwonka, jr., Kenosha St. Joseph (28-1): She placed sixth as a freshman and fifth as a sophomore. This year she is the No. 1 seed with her only loss in three sets to University School’s Veda Sane. Veda Sane, jr., University School (24-3): The No. 2 seed didn’t compete for the high school last season but as the No. 3 seed in her freshman year lost to Czerwonka’s older sister, Claire, in the semifinals. This year she and Olivia Czerwonka have split 2 three-set matches. Riley Strauss, sr., University School (23-5): The No. 5 seed was the state runner-up last season and was a doubles champion as a sophomore. DIVISION 2 DOUBLES Kaitlyn Kalinka, sr., and Megan Setter, jr., Kenosha St. Joseph (29-0): The tandem is the top seed and is poised to bring home a title after reaching the final last season. Mackenzie Lindow, jr., and Erin Rice, jr., East Troy: The Trojans tandem earned the No. 3 seed after suffering a 6-3, 7-6 (3) loss to the team from Kenosha St. Joseph in the sectional final.