Wichita tennis standouts fare well at Tournament of Champions

There were plenty of bright spots for Wichita tennis Saturday.

Wichita Collegiate held its annual Tournament of Champions with teams from across Kansas, and standouts from Collegiate, Kapaun and Bishop Carroll put on a show. Here are a few notes:

Collegiate finishes runner-up in doubles

The hosts brought the big guns.

Syndey Lair/Hannah Geoffroy finished second in doubles Saturday. The defending 4A state champions reached the final with an 8-2 win over Bishop Carroll’s Lauren Steven/Paige Strangoner.

Lair/Geoffroy fell to Blue Valley North’s powerful duo Flanagan/O’Brien in the championship match, 8-1, but Geoffroy said she was happy with how they played Saturday.

“I think it was a good prep for state,” she said. “I think this is the best tournament of the season, so even to get this far is really good.”

Luckily for the Collegiate standouts, they won’t have to see Blue Valley North — the reigning 6A champion — in the postseason. But Lair said they could take away a lot of from a promising tournament and humbling final.

“It’s good practice to play at that high of a level, especially people who just have really great strokes and know the game,” she said.

Kapaun takes third (and fourth) in singles

The Crusaders might have the two best singles players in 5A.

They met for third at the Tournament of Champions as sophomore Clara Whitaker beat freshman Reagan Boleski 8-4. Whitaker won the 5A singles championship last year, and Boleski figures to be in that mix this season.

Whitaker went down 1-0 and had to find time to compose herself, but once she did, Boleski said she could sense a sudden burst of energy. She said having a player like Whitaker, a reigning state champion, on her team only pushes her more.

“I love playing with Clara,” she said. “She’s good to hit with and good to compete with.”

Whitaker said it’s clear Boleski has talent and potential. That only helps her to stay sharp for the postseason, she said.

“She’s improving, too, every day, and it only makes me want to improve more,” Whitaker said.

Carroll holds on for third in doubles

They almost squandered it.

Carroll’s Lauren Steven/Paige Stranghoner came third in doubles Saturday with an 8-6 win over Arkansas City’s Burr/Arnett. It was their first doubles tournament together,but for a time, it looked as if they were going to lose it.

Carroll went up 6-1 to start the match. They were in command and looked to be cruising to the third-place finish, but Ark City clawed back and won five straight games to tie it at 6-6.

“I feel like we dropped the momentum,” Stranghoner said.

The Eagles took the seventh point, and Steven said that was the difference.

“That was when we got the momentum back,” Steven said. “What we did in the first six games, that’s what we did in the last two.”

This story was originally published September 22, 2018 at 6:46 PM.