Girls tennis players showcase skillsets during spring sports season

Don’t underestimate females.

They can play, too.

The 2026 Southern Ohio Conference and OHSAA Southeast District tennis season was a prime example of that.

With well over a dozen females taking part in playing against their male counterparts on either teams that had co-ed tennis offerings or even as an individual willing to showcase their game against the boys tennis players at their school, the Southeast District certainly had a great deal of talented girls tennis players in 2026.

That was evident in Scioto County alone, where no less than 15 girls tennis players competed against boys tennis players and more than held their own in the process.

Their skillsets certainly impressed Clay tennis coach Bobby Blanton and Valley boys tennis coach Miranda Estep, who each had girls tennis players at their No. 1 singles positions throughout the duration of the spring season.

“Them playing in a boys league and a mixed league, that’s something that’s going to help them and build their mindset outside of tennis,” Estep said of the girls tennis talent present in Scioto County. “It’s going to help them challenge and overcome different obstacles in life.”

“The number of females competing has been great,” Blanton said. “And they’re not just playing either — they’re competing, and they’re winning matches.”

Clay was led all season long by Caroline Ridenour, a dependable multi-sport athlete who held serve as the team’s No. 1 singles player over the course of the season.

Ridenour ultimately advanced through the Southeast Sectional Tournament and onto district play alongside fellow tennis player Billy Miller in doubles competition, after the pair were brought together from their singles positions to comprise a doubles team beginning with the sectional stage.

Blanton was highly complimentary of Ridenour’s growth in terms of her physical and mental toughness, and credited her work as a multi-sport athlete who also plays girls basketball for Clay as a big piece in her growth. Ridenour, who just completed her junior season, still has another year left to play both sports.

“Caroline really did take several steps forward this year with her game,” Blanton said. “She’s added a lot more variety in terms of the shots she can put together. Playing girls basketball has helped her in terms of the physical and mental aspect of the game. She’s gotten stronger in that regard. She’s able to push through tough matches. She has all the shots in the bag. With Billy (Miller) playing alongside her, she was able to utilize them more in doubles. She was hitting shots down the line, she was hitting lob shots, she can hit backhand slices or volleys. The harder you hit the ball to her, the more she likes it. She’s going to hit the ball back just as hard.”

Together, Ridenour and Miller defeated Wheelersburg’s Brady Schomburg and Mason Billiter by a 6-1, 7-5 count and added in a 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 triumph over Tate Johnson and Gabe Turner of Minford on the second day of doubles competition to advance to the OHSAA Division II Southeast Sectional Championship Match. The pair then advanced to the OHSAA Division II Southeast District Semifinals together.

“Caroline is just a special player,” Blanton said. “I can’t speak highly enough of her. She competes, day in and day out. She knows what she’s going up against every match. I don’t think that she’s ever played another female, since she started out as a freshman. She’s always played against boys at the No. 2 spot or the No. 1 spot. To accomplish what she has accomplished is a great feat. I’m just really happy for her.”

Blanton’s confidence in Ridenour’s game has never wavered.

“The role she’s in is not an easy role,” Blanton said. “Sometimes, she feels like she’s not contributing to the team, but we’ve told her regularly, ‘If you’re not in the No. 1 spot, someone else is going to have to play there, and if you’re not winning, they’re probably not going to win in that spot, either.’ She’s kept a good attitude and I’m just really happy for her. It was really validating to see her make it to districts.”

Both Abi Miller and Sophia Craft also saw significant time for Clay throughout the 2026 season as well, with Miller balancing tennis along with girls track and field events en route to finding time to make an impact in both sports.

Valley had its own ace in the hole at the No. 1 singles position.

Coming off of a promising sophomore season, Kylie Reed went wire-to-wire as the team’s No. 1 singles talent. Reed, who has two seasons left to continue improving her own tennis resume, was named as the Indians’ MVP by her fellow teammates in unanimous fashion.

“Excellent player,” Estep said of Reed. “Many people will be hearing big things about her in the future; I have no doubt.”

“Playing against male tennis players and still being successful has shown me that no matter who my opponent is, I can still compete and play at the same level as anyone,” Reed said. “Sometimes playing against male tennis players can be intimidating, but that has helped me to build my mental strength and shown me not to focus so much on who I’m playing, but how I’m playing.”

Out of Valley’s seven starting players between singles and doubles play, three were female. In addition to Reed at the top of the lineup in singles play,

Emily Roberts and Ellie Wright played doubles for Valley. They just finished their senior seasons after playing significant roles over the last three years.

“They earned their spots through challenge matches and what we did at practice,” Estep said.

While the aforementioned females are all talented, they are far from the only ones who played.

Clay also has Sophia Beach and Lexi Kennison rising up through the ranks, while Valley had Naomi Bradshaw, Keeley Porginski, Aubrey Roberts and Reagan Rolfe all waiting in the wings this year as part of a healthy set of tennis participants with seven females on its roster.

In addition to Clay and Valley, Minford, New Boston Glenwood and West each had three regular contributors at or near the top of their respective lineups, with Claire Clevenger helping hold the fort down for the Falcons, Arenda Gosselin adding onto a strong multi-sport career for the Tigers, and Chloe Bryant showing her own skillset as another multi-sport athlete for the Senators.

“Valley’s girls were and are tough — Kylie and Emily and the ones who played at No. 2 doubles for Miranda (Estep),” Blanton said. “Arenda’s been around forever. I’ve coached against her and her brothers, and she was a good player. To go out and compete against the guys, day in and day out, they do a great job.”

Throw in New Boston Glenwood contributors Serenity Snook and Ella Craft, and one has a highly healthy set of females offering a variety of skillsets to the table.

“I feel like the females show up and really do represent,” Estep said. “They’re not just out there hitting the ball. They’re out there competing. A lot of the guys know that it’s going to be a good match when they go up against Caroline Ridenour (at Clay) or Chloe Bryant (at West). It says a lot about the athletes that they are that they’re willing to compete at a higher level. They’re challenging themselves.”

“Being surrounded and seeing so many competitive female tennis players is really motivating and inspiring for me,” Reed said. “It proves that girls can compete and work hard while still supporting each other and showing people female athletes are capable of anything. They’ve helped me gain more confidence in myself and become an overall stronger player by not only competing against them, but seeing them win. Seeing other female athletes succeed and break stereotypes is a very inspiring and motivating environment to be in.”

Blanton, himself, gets a kick out of the reactions that he sees from the male tennis players when they drop a set or a match to their female counterparts.

He’s certainly coached quite a few talented females who have done just that over the years with names like Regan Osborn and Sarah Widdowson having been a thorn in the side of their opposition, both male and female alike. New Boston Glenwood alum Jaycee Carter was another talented female tennis player who paved the way prior to Gosselin reaching high school, among many others.

“Tennis is so different from other sports that are offered, especially when it’s females competing against males,” Blanton said. “I like to see the girls beat the boys, because the boys get frustrated. I’ve been very fortunate over the last 10 years to have some really good female athletes at Clay, and I just think to myself, ‘How did these kids get overlooked by other sports? How did I get lucky enough to have them on the tennis team?’ They put in the work.”

Estep, who says she “loves and respects” the female tennis players in Scioto County, is continuously proud of what they’ve had to overcome to get to their own levels of success.

“Whenever the racquet club closed years ago, that definitely was not good for tennis in our area,” Estep said. “I believe we’re still feeling the effects of that. A lot of people don’t have the time or resources to drive for lessons 45 minutes every night. The girls competing through that shows their drive and dedication to the sport and the respect that they’re going to earn through hard work, hanging in there, and showing all of these people who they are. I know the boys on my team didn’t see them as girls. They see them as teammates, and they respect their work ethic.”

As a talent who is competing in between the lines, Reed has seen their work ethic and skillsets up close, Reed believes that there is a “very promising future” for the sport of tennis itself.

“I hope the future of tennis continues to improve and inspire loads of people to play,” Reed said. “As I continue my tennis journey, I hope to see many female athletes continue to play in the spring and against/with male athletes.”