Girls State Tournament Preview - 2025

It is finally state tournament time on the girls side! On the heels of historic boys tournaments, the girls individual state tournaments are taking place Friday and Saturday while the team tournament finishes up on next Monday. Lots of great opportunities lie ahead for all qualifiers in the coming days to cement their name in Iowa HS Tennis history. Excited to continue to follow along as the season approaches its close for the 2025 chapter.

2025 State Tournament Notes

Locations

2A: Hawkeye Tennis & Rec. Center (Iowa City, IA)

1A : 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 June 2. For more information, please visit: https://www.gobound.com/ia/ighsau/girlstennis/2024-25/tickets

Live Results

The state will be entering results as matches come off. Updated brackets throughout the tournament can be found here: Postseason HQ

2A

The Singles Bracket

A more open singles field compared to last year. The graduation of Katelynn Kock opens the door for a number of players to stand on top of the podium Saturday afternoon. Iowa State commit Kira Smith enters the tournament at the top seed. Smith missed a number of singles matches this season for injuries, but made the most of it in the matches she place upending Grace Frye, Sidney Peterson and Riley Hilton. Can she play four matches in two days? Haan and Jepsen split their matches it seems like every year, making it difficult to pick a winner between the two. Should they meet again in the semis, mark it down as splitting sets. The surprise to most people is 2024 runner-up Lily Holland being seeded four. While her SOS maybe was weaker than some others, she won the matches that were in front of her. Her only blemish? Gabi Fleming of Xavier, who one could argue is the best player on the girls side in Iowa regardless of division. Do not count Holland out. Her game style makes players go crazy with her shot tolerance and added offense to her game. She is a nightmare match for anybody. Others to look out for are Lexi Moen and Riley Hilton who would get seeds their second round if they get through the first match. Both are very capable of turning the draw upside down in a hurry.

Seeds

1. Kira Smith, Ankeny

2. Sescie Haan, Clinton

3. Madelyn Jepsen, North Scott

4. Lily Holland, CR Jefferson

1st Round Match to Watch:

Samara Peterson (Centennial) vs Victoria Bakros (Dowling) - Looking at the singles draw, there may not be a ton of close matches in the initial round. Peterson against Bakros could give us that close scoreline however. Peterson battled through her regional to earn a state berth, as did Bakros. Centennial's #1 will take on Dowling's #3. CIML supremacy on the line and a shot at the No. 1 seed most likely in round two.

Finals Prediction:

Holland vs Jepsen

Singles Champion Prediction:

Lily Holland, CR Jefferson

The Doubles Bracket

Defending champs are back, Dowling's Juju Mauro and Grace Frye return as the No. 1 seed and begin their quest for back to back titles tomorrow morning. The top half seems to be tougher than the bottom half, so the Maroons will have to play good ball to get back to the championship match. The seeds look to be done pretty well and in a good order. The story though, is the pair of Postnikov/Stier are not seeded. It is believed many thought they are deserving of a seed but did not get one. Postnikov missed the regional final dual meet against Hempsted for college orientation, a meet where the Women of Troy ultimately fell 5-4 and did not reach the state quarterfinals. A dark horse team in the draw for sure, and surely will cause disruption. in the top half of the bracket. The Wolves duo of Taylor and Deines are set up well in the bottom half and are my pick to reach the finals. Deines has battled through some injuries this year and hopefully is ready to go the next few days.

Seeds

1. Juju Mauro/Grace Frye, Dowling

2. Anna Christensen/Sedina Begic, Waterloo West

3. London Taylor/Mia Deines, Waukee Northwest

4. Sidney Peterson/Zoey Studer, Johnston

1st Round Match to Watch:

Rory Bird/Raegan Reuter (Valley) - vs Mya Hoden/Claire Kelley (Hempstead) - This is one of the more competitive matchups in the doubles first round. Hempstead's duo grinded through their regional with a few three set matches to make their state berth. Valley has been rock solid most of the year and has had good success against the MVC teams they have played. A ton of shots will be made in this match, and the team that is more aggressive at the net will create an edge for themselves.

Finals Prediction:

Frye/Mauro vs Taylor/Deines

Doubles Champions Prediction:

Grace Frye/Juju Mauro (Dowling)

1A

The Singles Bracket

The best player arguably in all of Iowa High School Girls tennis, Gabi Fleming is set to begin her singles title defense tomorrow. She could realistically make the finals without dropping a game for an anticipated title match potentially against Kate Holton in a rematch of last year's final, or Claire Smock. Smock and Holton will be a highly anticipated matchup should they meet in the quarters. In the state team quarterfinals, they faced off, and Holton got the best of that meeting pulling off a super tiebreak win to push the meet to doubles. We would expect another close encounter in the semi-finals as well. This is Fleming's tournament to lose, and outside of the other two, there will be a lot of competition for placing 4th-8th. A number of names to look out for are Lauren Gibb, Gabi Jacobs, Kaylie Simons, Poojita Mukadam and Riley Nothwehr, a number of these players ranked in the top 10 throughout the season.

Seeds

1. Gabi Fleming, Xavier

2. Kate Holton, Columbus

3. Claire Smock, Pella

4. Gabi Jacobs, Shenandoah

1st Round Match to Watch:    

Kaylie Simons (Kuemper) vs Riley Nothwehr (Clarinda) - The most even matchup in the first round potentially. Both players were ranked top six at some point this year, and then have stumbled a bit down the stretch. In common opponents, they both lost to Gabi Jacobs and Camryn Glass throughout the season. This one may split sets, and the reward for the winner in an inevitable match with Claire Smock.

Finals Prediction:

Fleming vs Smock

Singles Champion Prediction:

Gabi Fleming (Xavier)

The Doubles Bracket

A bit of a mystery of a draw this year in doubles. The top 4 seeds seem to be pretty appropriate this year and in a good order as well. Tott/Norton return to the doubles field and are the number 3 seed. They are looking to improve upon a second round showing last year and push for the semi-finals. This seems like a year that all four seeds would hold and provide some tight matches for championship berths. Tobin/Smith of Xavier enter as the top seed, and may be the small favorites if there is one in the draw. The Saints are in a position to push for the triple crown as a program this year once again, and doubles will be the key in taking that big step going into the team final four. Who will execute over the next two days. The duo that does the best, may end up with the title.

Seeds

1. Isabel Tobin/Ruby Smith, Xavier

2. Olivia Huinker/Grace Huinker, Decorah

3. Aidalyn Tott/Izzy Norton, DNH

4. Charlotte Schwabe/Sophie Tidgren, Kuemper

1st Round Match to Watch: 

Addy Joslin/Lauren Muller (DNH) vs Marlea Cox/Janie Maasdam (Knoxville) - An interesting first round here, with DNH's second doubles pair in the tournament, a first for their program in advancing multiple entries to state. They will line up against Knoxville, including Maasdam, who has spent a few weeks ranked in the top 10 in her own right. The winner of this presumably gets a crack at the #4 seed and a chance at placing top four.

Finals Prediction:

Tobin/Smith vs Huinker/Huinker

Doubles Champions Prediction:

Olivia Huinker/Grace Huinker (Decorah)