Neenah’s girls tennis team captured its first WIAA state championship with a 4-3 win over Brookfield East on Saturday at the Nielsen Tennis Center in Madison.
The Rockets swept all three doubles matches and then got a clinching win from Jordyn Lawatsch at No. 2 singles 6-4, 6-2 to become the first Fox Valley Association school to win a girls tennis state title. It was the first state championship in any sport for the Rockets since boys soccer won the 2007 state title. The title is the school’s 31st overall in 13 different sports. Neenah had been runner-up in girls tennis four previous times with silver trophies in 1984, 1986, 2000 and 2014.
The Rockets opened the match by sweeping the three doubles matches. Amanda Dorsey and Anna Beyer posted a 6-0, 6-2 win at No. 3 and Hannah Dorsey and Andrea Galloway added a 6-2, 6-1 win at No. 2. The Rockets made it 3-0 when Kendra Kappes and Christina Price won 7-6, 7-5 at No. 1.
Brookfield East won at No. 4 and No. 1 singles to cut the lead to 3-2, but Lawatsch clinched the match with her victory.
Earlier in the day, the Rockets defeated Waunakee 5-2 in the semifinals. Neenah again swept the doubles matches and Lawatsch and Kiki Risgaard both won in singles. In the quarterfinals, Neenah ousted defending state champion Arrowhead 4-3 as Risgaard and Megan Nasr each had singles victories. Hannah Dorsey and Galloway and Amanda Dorsey and Anna Beyer won in doubles.
Neenah finished the season with an 18-1 record in dual meets after finishing 17-1 in its runner-up season in 2014. The team is coached by Kelly Van Handel, a 2008 graduate of Neenah High School. |