St. Mary Catholic doubles duo, Neenah players highlight state tennis qualifiers

The reigning state champion doubles team and six players from Neenah highlight Appleton-area players heading to the WIAA girls individual tennis state championships starting Oct. 16.

Vivie Auth and Adel Schneider of St. Mary Catholic seek a second consecutive undefeated season, while Neenah’s Celia Gentile and the doubles team of Sydney Michalkiewicz and Rebekah Thomas also enter state as seeded players.

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The tournament begins at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 16, with first-round matches at Nielsen Tennis Stadium in Madison and resumes Oct. 17 with play through the quarterfinals in singles and doubles.

Semifinal matches are at 9 a.m. Oct. 18, with championship matches to follow early in the afternoon.

Here’s a look at Appleton-area players headed to state and how they got there.

Division 1 singles

Celia Gentile, Neenah

The junior is the No. 11 seed and has a 27-5 record. She took first place at No. 1 singles at the Oshkosh North Sectional, beating Julia English of Sheboygan North 6-2, 6-0 in the championship match. Gentile won one match at state last season in singles.

Ella Motto, Neenah

The junior is headed to state with a 29-3 record. She took first place at No. 2 singles at the Oshkosh North Sectional, beating Thea Bates of Sheboygan North 6-0, 7-6 (3) in the championship match.

Elise Schreiber, Kimberly

The junior has an 18-13 record. She lost in the first round at No. 1 singles at the Notre Dame Sectional. Schreiber finished second at the Fox Valley Association Championships, losing to Gentile in the final.

Division 1 doubles

Olivia Gaskill and Rosie Whitlinger, Appleton North

Gaskill, a senior, and Whitlinger, a junior, have a 15-3 record. They took second place at No. 1 doubles at the Notre Dame Sectional, falling to Ana Cristescu and Maria Cristescu of De Pere 6-0, 6-2 in the championship match. Gaskill qualified for state last year with Sabrina Janda and lost in the first round.

Kate Jannette and Mariel Pante, Xavier

The seniors have a 21-5 record after taking third place at No. 1 doubles at the Notre Dame Sectional. The duo also qualified for state last year in Division 1 and won one match.

Sydney Michalkiewicz and Rebekah Thomas, Neenah

Michalkiewicz, a sophomore, and Thomas, a junior, are the No. 6 seed with a 26-6 record. They took second place at the Oshkosh North Sectional, falling 7-6 (3), 3-6, (10-7) to Taylor Peterson and Jordin Popp of Manitowoc Lincoln in the championship match. Michalkiewicz qualified as a freshman last year with Meredith Werner and won one match after a first-round bye. Thomas qualified with Ava Motto last year and won one match.

Ava Motto and Cecelia Alexander, Neenah

The seniors have a 29-3 record after taking first place at No. 2 doubles at the Oshkosh North Sectional with a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Ali Pilling and Mya Hogue of Plymouth.

Division 2 singles

Erin Blaney, St. Mary Catholic

The senior has a 13-12 record. She took fourth place at No. 1 singles at the Kohler Sectional.

Division 2 doubles

Vivie Auth and Adel Schneider, St. Mary Catholic

Auth, a sophomore, and Schneider, a senior, are the No. 1 seeds and undefeated with a 24-0 record. They are the defending Division 2 state champions in doubles and haven’t lost a match since becoming a duo, posting a 55-0 record. They took first place at No. 1 doubles at the Kohler Sectional with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Gwen Rau and Peyton Peterson of Sheboygan Falls. Schneider also qualified in 2023 in singles and lost in the first round.

Nadia Alexander and Lorelai Miller, St. Mary Catholic

Alexander, a junior, and Miller, a sophomore, have a 21-2 record. They took first place at No. 2 doubles at the Kohler Sectional with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Fiona Bryant and Tori Beaumont of Sheboygan Falls. Alexander played at state last year with Emily Vogel and won in the first round before losing to Auth and Schneider in the second round.

This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: WIAA high school girls tennis state championship preview