Girls tennis roundup: Minnewaska Lakers fall in Section 6A final

Oct. 7—ROGERS — With one match remaining to decide the Section 6A championship between two of the state’s top teams, Minnewaska and Foley supporters inside the Rogers Tennis Club were uneasy as tensions rose on the outskirts of the playing surface.

Minnewaska’s Rachel Rankin and Foley’s Lydia Anderson were in the early parts of their second set at No. 2 singles. Anderson won the first set, with a state berth on the line.

As the two juniors squared off, one could only hear the sounds of their squeaky shoes, the thump in their rackets and the ball bouncing off the court before a point was earned.

The pin-drop silent thriller ended when Anderson secured a 6-4 victory to lift the Falcons to a 4-3 win over the Lakers in the Section 6A girls team championship on Tuesday afternoon. Foley won after losing back-to-back Section 7A championships to Pine City the past two seasons.

“It felt cool knowing that everyone was there watching us, and knew everyone had anticipation, knowing that we haven’t pulled off a section finals win (recently), so we were very hopeful,” Anderson said. “The fans were very anxious and I could sense the tension throughout the air, but everyone was very supportive and it was a great match. … I feed off of energy, so I was very appreciative of when my teammates would cheer for me.”

Anderson’s second set victory came after a momentous first-set comeback.

Up against a 5-2 deficit, she clawed her way to a 7-6 (5) win over Rankin, who was aiming to help Minnewaska back to the state tournament for the first time since 2019.

“I was looking across the other courts and, I thought, my teammates have been there for me, they need me right now. I need to pull this through,” Anderson said. “I just knew that it could come down to, simply, me losing or winning.”

Anderson and company flipped the script on top-seeded Minnewaska, which ranked second in Class A and finished with a 20-2 record, behind a sweep in the doubles matches.

All three of Foley’s doubles victories came in straight sets, led by Ashlyn Gapinski and Jaida Fleck, who won 7-6 (3), 6-2 against senior Addy Heid and Norah VanZee.

Now, the Falcons are headed to the Class A state tournament, which begins Tuesday, Oct. 21, at the Reed-Sweatt Family Tennis Center in Minneapolis. Quarterfinal times are 8 a.m., 10 a.m., noon and 2 p.m. in the unreleased bracket.

“It’s long awaited,” said Foley head coach Zach Kantor, whose squad is ranked fifth in Class A. “We’ve worked hard for a lot of years and have been right there and have been just short. They wanted it all the more as a result and it’s that determination in our work that paid off that makes it that much sweeter. There’s no traffic on the extra mile and it was due to their hard work that they were able to pull this off and earn it. It’s overwhelming, exciting and fun.”

Minnewaska, which earned a 5-2 victory against the Falcons on Aug. 22 at the Alexandria quadrangular, got its wins at Nos. 1, 3 and 4 singles.

Alia Randt, one of three seniors in the Lakers’ lineup, won 6-1, 6-1 against Olivia Sauer. Olivia Danielson, another Minnewaska senior, earned a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Alaina Miller. Izzy Wallin, one of Minnewaska’s three freshmen, won 6-1, 6-0 against Rory Keating.

“They just played a little better than us today,” Lakers head coach Tara Reichmann said. “We had a heck of a season. … This is a very tough loss.”

Minnewaska swept the singles matches with victories from Alia Randt, Rachel Rankin, Olivia Danielson and Izzy Wallin and got a No. 3 doubles win from Ari Quelle and Kennedy Blair to beat New London-Spicer in the Section 6A semifinals at Rogers Tennis Club.

NLS’ pair of wins came from Heidi Taunton and Averie Turner at No. 1 doubles and Addi Nelson and Olivia Paffrath at No. 2 doubles. The Wildcats finished with a 9-5 record.

The Dragons, ranked fourth in Class A, swept Le Sueur-Henderson in the Section 5A championship at Gustavus Adolphus College’s Swanson Tennis Center in St. Peter.

Litchfield is bound for the Class A state tournament for the second consecutive year. Last season, the Dragons finished as the Class A runner-up. Blake won the Class A state title.

The Class A state tournament begins on Tuesday, Oct. 21, at the Reed-Sweatt Family Tennis Center in Minneapolis. Quarterfinal times are 8 a.m., 10 a.m., noon and 2 p.m. and the bracket has not yet been released. Litchfield was the third seed a season ago. Blake was the top seed.

Litchfield swept the singles matches en route to defeating Glencoe-Silver Lake at Gustavus Adolphus College’s Swanson Tennis Center in St. Peter.

Isla Dille and Emma Wuotila led the way for the Dragons, securing 6-0, 6-0 wins at Nos. 1 and 3 singles. Dille is ranked fourth among Class A individuals.