Time to round out the 2024 season! Girls team state final four commences tomorrow at Waukee Northwest and Byrnes Park respectively. Dowling and Xavier enter the field as the top seeds. Last weekend was a great couple of days with the singles and doubles state tournaments, a lot of good tennis in a short amount of time and new champions were decided. Enjoy some tennis this week as the 2024 edition of Iowa HS Tennis comes to a close.
2024 Team State Tournament Notes
Locations
2A: Waukee Northwest High School (Waukee, IA)
2A: Byrnes Park (Waterloo, IA)
Attendance Fees
The IGHSAU is charging an admission fee of $10 per day of the individual state tournament and team state tournament on May 29. For more information, please visit: https://www.gobound.com/ia/ighsau/girlstennis/2023-24/tickets
Live Results
The state will be entering results as matches come off. Updated brackets throughout the tournament can be found here: Postseason HQ. Also make sure to follow twitter as I will post results as quick as I can!
2A Semi-Finals
Dowling Breakdown: A very solid year for Dowling out in West Des Moines. The 2022 champs return as this years #1 seed in the team semi-finals and enter as the heavy favorite like they have been all season. Top player Ava Petersen did not compete in districts and therefore did not have the opportunity to compete and individual state. Juniors Grace Frye and Juju Mauro claimed the doubles crown on Saturday and make up a very tough top 3 in the Maroon lineup. The battle tested Dowling squad held on for a thrilling 5-3 win over Northwest in the team quarterfinals, Northwest a team itself that is probably a top 3 team in the state at worst, and are back in the final four. Depth is a huge part of Dowling's success this year, and I expect it to be again tomorrow.
Iowa City West: A surprise final four team in the Women of Troy. An excellent season out of Iowa City this spring for this squad, taking out #2 Pleasant Valley 5-4 in the quarterfinals. Led by top 10 ranked Maggie Shin, Iowa City West is back into the final four for the first time since 2021. Coach Brenda Guan's team has come on strong as of late and hopes to keep the momentum going. Shin has proved to be a strong #1 across the state, and the surrounding cast of players will need to win some matches to upset the states top ranked team in Dowling.
Prediction: Dowling def. Iowa City West 5-1
Valley Breakdown: Valley has been a fairly surprising team this spring, where they came in being very young and the expectations were a bit lower than the past two years. Former singles state champ Claire Gu had departed, as well as veteran Maddie Hockmuth, leaving sophomore Lexi Moen to take the reigns as the top player for the Tigers. Moen has had a really solid spring and unfortunately couldn't go in the singles state tournament where she was the #2 seed originally. It is unknown what Moen's status is for tomorrows matches. Valley beat Wash the first time they played in the regular season and the young squad will need to step up again to secure a spot in the finals.
Cedar Rapids Washington Breakdown: Defending champs made it back to the final four for the third year in a row, and are the defending champs for a reason. The Warriors are peaking at the right time and have been on a hot streak since the postseason started, including a singles state title for the top player in 2A girls this year, Katelynn Kock. The formula for Wash this spring has been secure three other points after Kock essentially earns the team two points in her own matches. They have done just that leading up to the final four with a strong depth to their lineup. Sam Becker it sounds like is unavailable after missing the state singles tournament due to injury. That puts a damper on the Warrior lineup that has been playing so well, and somebody is going to have to step up to reach the title match.
Prediction: Valley def. CR Wash 5-4
Finals Prediction:
Dowling def. Valley 5-1
1A Semi-Finals
Xavier Breakdown: They were knocked down once, but not again this year. Xavier returns to the final four after an upset last year that keep them out. Led by the newly crowned 1A singles champion in Gabi Fleming, the Saints enter the matches tomorrow as strong favorites to capture another team crown. Avery Link and Ruby Smith teamed up for a 3rd place finish in the state doubles tournament, and joined by veterans Isabel Tobin and Olivia Cobb, this team is in prime position to get things done tomorrow. Dominant all year, Xavier completed an undefeated regular season in the gauntlet of the MVC for the first time under Coach Matt Foxhoven, and just has two seniors in Link and Cobb in the starting lineup this year.
DNH Breakdown: One of the surprise teams of the 2024 season! Dike New-Hartford has made the team state tournament for the first time in program history and still isn't done yet. This season feels a lot like Central Dewitt's 2023 season when they upset Xavier on their way to the final four, and DNH actually took out CD in the quarters to get here! Aida Tott and Izzy Norton lead the way as the top players for DNH, and they claimed a 7th place state doubles finish together this past weekend. DNH is going to make you earn every single point at every match, and this feels eerily similar as the Xavier/CD match last year.
Prediction: Xavier def. DNH 5-1
Pella Breakdown: This is the 5th team state appearance for Pella, all coming since the spring of 2017. The best finish for this program was that next year in 2018 where they finished as runner-up. The Dutch have been a steady team all year with just one dual match loss to 2A Northwest I believe. Emily Blom has continued to be a staple of the team since her freshman year and took 3rd in singles this past weekend. The Dutch have a great opportunity to get back to the finals and a shot at their first team championship.
Spencer Breakdown: Spencer came into the postseason with 2 losses, both to Spirit Lake, and the Tigers got their revenge when it was win or go home in the regionals. A number of strong wins in regionals saw them take out the #3 team in the state, and the most decorated tennis program of all time in Iowa history, Columbus Catholic in the quarterfinals. Lauren Ellis leads the way atop of the lineup for Spencer and was a singles state participant this last week. A weaker schedule throughout the year may show up tomorrow against a much strong Pella team.
Prediction: Pella def. Spencer 5-0
Finals Prediction:
Xavier def. Pella 5-3
Good luck everyone!
-Iowa HS Tennis
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