Girls Tennis Preview

Lafayette finished third in state as a team last year and the Lancers would like to go back to Springfield in October and see if they can lob their way to a championship.

The Lancers, under veteran coach Donna Stauffer, have a whopping 80 girls out overall. Haleigh Chobanian, who wound up fourth in individual singles, is back along with seven other returnees.

Marquette has five girls back from a strong squad last year.

Westminster Christian Academy looks to be strong in Class 1.

Here’s a look at the teams, with insight from the coaches.

 

INCARNATE WORD ACADEMY RED KNIGHTS

2011 record: 3-10 in duals. Won district. One singles player and one doubles team went to state.

Coach: Mary Nahm. Entering 14th year as head coach with a record of 110-86.

Returning: 6 lettermen

Players to watch: senior Kaitlyn George (who went to state as part of doubles team last year), sophomore Katie Winkler, sophomore Grace Miller, junior Jessica Stumpf, junior Lindsay Kloepfer

Newcomers expected to contribute: freshman Jocelyn Horton, who will be playing No. 1

Team strength: Overall good skills. Team is stronger than in recent years, and very even.

Goals: Improve season record and do well in new district. Hopefully head to Springfield in October.

Teams in Class 2 District 5: Hazelwood Central, Hazelwood East, Incarnate Word Academy, McCluer, McCluer North, Riverview Gardens

Quote: “This is the best team we’ve had in a few years,” Nahm said. “Having a freshman come in and play No. 1 is very exciting. All of the girls have been working hard and are very competitive. We’re looking forward to our first match this week with St. Dominic.”

 

KENNEDY CELTS

Coach: Erica Argue. Entering her first year as head varsity coach at Kennedy after seven years as assistant coach with Joe Walterbach. Assistant coach, Rob Taylor, is returning to Kennedy coaching staff after seven years.

Returning: 4 lettermen

Players to watch: seniors Kelly O’Brien and Kate Antor, junior Michelle Gregory, sophomore Megan Angelbeck

Newcomers expected to contribute: senior Maddy Russell, juniors Caitlyn Werkmeister, Bridget Fleming and Samantha Ybarra

Teams in AAA: Borgia, Cardinal Ritter, DuBourg, Duchesne, Kennedy, Lutheran St. Peters, Rosati-Kain, St. Dominic, Trinity

Teams in Class 1, District 6: John F. Kennedy, Principia, The Fulton School at St. Albans, Visitation Academy, Westminster Christian Academy, Whitfield

Quote: “We are looking forward to a strong season,” Argue said. “We are very happy to have 25 girls on the Kennedy tennis team this year.”

 

LAYAFETTE LANCERS

2011 record: 13-1 in duals. Won conference and Kickapoo tournaments. Won team districts, team sectionals and placed third in the state. Haleigh Chobanian finished fourth in individual competition.

Coach Donna Stauffer. Entering 16th year as head coach with a 183-26 record at Lafayette.

Returning: 8 lettermen

Players to watch: Returning singles players Haleigh Chobanian, Arianna Demos, Abby Carpenter, Kayla Neskar. Also Kelly Carpenter is returning to the Varsity lineup after two years on cross country and Sarah Goodman who will be playing singles as well as doubles this season.

Newcomers expected to contribute: Emily Weinhold, Morgan Poisson and Courtney Trube will provide additional depth and will play a strong role throughout the season.

Team strengths: Depth and the commitment to constantly improve.

Goals: Win our conference, win team district, team sectionals and state.

Teams in Suburban West Conference: Eureka, Ladue, Lafayette, Marquette, Mehlville, Oakville, Parkway South

Favorite to win Suburban West Conference: Not knowing what new players are coming into our conference, I would say we have a good chance to win our conference, based on returning players.

Teams in Class 2, District 2: Eureka, Lafayette, Marquette, Parkway South, Parkway West, Rockwood Summit

Quote: “We are excited to begin another season and look forward to the new format of six singles and three doubles matches for our conference,” Stauffer said. “This format aligns us with the rest of the state and enables us to get experience for our varsity players in both singles and doubles. We have a very large team again with 80 total players – 10 on Varsity, 40 on JV and 30 on our prep squad. We want to make sure every player on our team has a positive experience and meets their individual goals.”

 

MARQUETTE MUSTANGS

2011 record: 9-3.

Coach: Matt Del Pizzo. Entering 10th season as head coach with an overall record of 125-50.

Returning: 5 lettermen

Players to watch: Audrey Moentmann, the No. 1 singles player.

Newcomers expected to contribute: sophomore Maddie Diedrich

Team strengths: Young team with strong senior leadership.

Goals: Have a winning record, compete for a conference tournament championship in our bracket, consistent improvement from all players.

Teams in Suburban West Conference: Eureka, Ladue, Lafayette, Marquette, Mehlville, Oakville, Parkway South

Favorite to win Suburban West Conference: Ladue or Lafayette

Teams in Class 2, District 2: Eureka, Lafayette, Marquette, Parkway South, Parkway West, Rockwood Summit

Quote: “I am looking forward to the season,” Del Pizzo. “We have a lot of fun personalities who love to play tennis and compete. One of the greatest aspects of coaching this group is watching them interact and getting to enjoy how much they all get along and support each other.”

 

PARKWAY NORTH VIKINGS

2011 record: 5-8. Finished second in districts. Qualified a doubles team for state.

Coach: Ron Lefcourt.

Returning: 7 lettermen

Players to watch: senior Emily McCarter, who was a state doubles qualifier the last two years.

Newcomers expected to contribute: freshman Bianca Gavaller at No. 1 singles

Team strengths: A number of girls with varsity experience. Strong doubles team who have played together for two years.

Goals: Steady improvement through the season, win districts, send some players to state.

Teams in Suburban South Conference: Clayton, Kirkwood, Parkway Central, Parkway West, Summit, University City, Webster Groves

Teams in Class 2, District 6: Francis Howell North, Hazelwood West, Parkway Central, Parkway North, Pattonville, Ritenour

Quote: “I’m very excited for the season as we have a wonderful mix of veterans and newcomers who all are excited to play and who all have great attitudes,” Lefcourt said.

 

PARKWAY SOUTH PATRIOTS

Coach: Nick Tanurchis.

Returning: 3 lettermen

Players to watch for this fall: Aamna Kidwai, Margret Winters, Katherine Li

Newcomers expected to contribute: A lot of junior varsity players to step up and be ready to compete at the varsity level.

Team strengths: Strong depth.

Goals: Have another winning season.

Teams in Suburban West Conference: Eureka, Ladue, Lafayette, Marquette, Mehlville, Oakville, Parkway South

Teams in Class 2, District 2: Eureka, Lafayette, Marquette, Parkway South, Parkway West, Rockwood Summit

Quote: “In challenge matches, we have a handful of girls who are very close in skill level, and they are really battling hard to grab one of the top six spots,” Tanurchis said. “We are hoping to have another winning season and know that we have our work cut out for us. The girls seem excited though and ready to compete and give it everything they have.”

 

WESTMINSTER CHRISTIAN ACADEMY WILDCATS

2011 record: 7-5-1 in duals.

Coach: Nathan Talley. Entering 11th year at Westminster Christian Academy.

Returning: 6 lettermen

Players to watch: Annie Schlafly at No. 1, Anna Bergman at No. 2 singles. Both are captains.

Newcomers expected to contribute: Maddie Deves, who is in her first year of varsity and will be at No. 4 singles.

Team strength: We have great depth this season – even our exhibition spots. No 11 and No. 12 are strong players.

Goals: Our district is loaded, so we are realistic about post season hopes – that said, we hope for a winning record and to win the middle flight of the Parkway Doubles tournament.

Teams in Class 1, District 6: John F. Kennedy, Principia, The Fulton School at St. Albans, Visitation Academy, Westminster Christian Academy, Whitfield

Quote: “These girls are amazing people,” Talley said. “Not only am I looking forward to watching the tennis, but I’m excited about watching them grow as they serve others. Our captains have some really cool plans and opportunities for us to think beyond tennis and beyond ourselves. I get most excited when players embrace playing for some reason that is bigger than themselves.”

 

WHITFIELD WARRIORS

2011 record: 8-4. Shraare Smith won our district in No. 1 singles.

Coach: Jill Starr. Entering fourth year as head coach at Whitfield.

Returning: 8 lettermen

Players to watch: junior Shraare Smith, Annalies Oertli, Morgan Cook, Courtney Langheim, Morgan Levy, Emma Holtzman, Maddie Scott

Teams in Class 1, District 6: John F. Kennedy, Principia, The Fulton School at St. Albans High School, Visitation Academy, Westminster Christian Academy, Whitfield

Quote: “I am looking forward to a deep, strong and mentally tough team this year,” Starr said.