Junior Blues ride depth to City Girls Tennis team championship

 By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Washburn Rural's depth was the difference in Monday's completion of the Topeka City Girls Tennis Championships at Kossover Tennis Center, with the Junior Blues winning the team championship by a 31-28 margin over Seaman.

Rural got a city title in No. 2 singles from senior Mena DiMarzio and the No. 2 doubles championship from juniors Izzy Haggard and Emerie Catlin and added a second-place finish in No. 1 singles from junior Carolina Chedzoy and a third in No. 1 doubles from seniors Claire Ireland and Gabby Martinez. 

 Washburn Rural poses for a team picture after winning the team championship by a 31-28 margin over Seaman in the City Girls Tennis Championship Monday at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

"We showed our depth throughout the tournament and that we're just a pretty strong team, one through six,'' Washburn Rural coach Brad Johnston said.

"I love where the girls are at right now. We've got some little kinks that we can fix but the girls are in prime form and we'll just see how the rest of the year plays out.''

Shawnee Heights junior Jette Glasenapp won the city title in No. 1 singles Monday at Kossover Tennis Center. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Shawnee Heights junior Jette Glasenapp, a foreign exchange student from Berlin, captured the No. 1 singles championship with a 6-4, 6-1 decision over Rural's Chedzoy while Seaman senior Katie Krumins and sophomore Molly Gorman outlasted Hayden senior Lauren Sandstrom and junior Emily Sheetz in the No. 1 doubles final, 6-4, 2-6, 10-7.

Glasenapp was up 6-4, 4-1 on Chedzoy on Thursday when the tournament was postponed by lightning and rain and won two straight games on Monday to close out the win.

I'm happy,'' Glasenapp said. "I think state is in two weeks and I'm excited to play. Hopefully, I can play. I'm happy I won (today) and hopefully there's going to be a lot more good matches.

"I'm excited to play tomorrow (in the Topeka West Invitational) and I'm going to try my best to win.'' 

Krumins and Gorman had just finished off a 6-4 first-set win over Sandstrom and Sheetz on Thursday in a rematch of the 2022 final when the tournament was pushed back.

Seaman's doubles team of Katie Krumins and Molly Gorman exchange hugs with Hayden's Lauren Sandstrom and Emily Sheetz after the Viking duo won the city title in No. 1 doubles. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]

Sandstrom and Sheetz dominated the second set to force a third-set super tiebreaker with Krumins and Gorman for the second straight year and Monday the Seaman duo came out on top after Sandstrom and Sheetz were victorious in '22.

"I've been looking forward to this tournament since that tiebreaker got over,'' Krumins said.

"For me it just gave me more motivation to win this year,'' Gorman said.

Gorman said it took awhile for her and Krumins to regroup after having four days between the start and the completion of the title match.

"It was really difficult. Did you see the second set?'' Gorman said. "We had the mentality that we wanted on Thursday so we had to re-set.''

"I think for us this means a lot because last year us losing that tiebreaker meant us losing city so the fact that we won that I feel we kind of made up for it a little bit,'' Krumins said. 

Washburn Rural senior Mena DiMarzio won the city title in No. 2 singles Monday at Kossover Tennis Center, helping the Junior Blues win the team championship. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN] 

Rural's DiMarzio outlasted Topeka High senior McCall Beall in the No. 2 singles championship match, 6-3, 7-5, while Catlin and Haggard topped Seaman senior Kate Eckert and freshman Cameron Lux in the No 2 doubles final, 6-3, 6-2. 

Seaman freshman Emma Sweeney finished third in No. 1 singles, posting a 6-2, 6-2 win over Hayden sophomore Grace Funk in the third-place match while Rural's Ireland and Martinez finished third in No. 1 doubles with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Topeka High's Cora Ambrose and Sophia Ambrose in the third-place match.

CITY GIRLS TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS

At Kossover Tennis Center

Team scores

Washburn Rural 31, Seaman 28, Hayden 23, Topeka High 21, Shawnee Heights 18, Cair Paravel Latin 12, Topeka West 11, Highland Park 4. 

Individual results

Singles

No. 1 -- Championship: Glasenapp, Shawnee Heights, def. Chedzoy, Washburn Rural, 6-4, 6-1. Third: Sweeney, Seaman, def. Funk, Hayden, 6-2, 6-2.

No. 2 -- Championship: DiMarzio, Washburn Rural, def. Beall, Topeka High, 6-3, 7-5. Third: Chinn, Seaman def. Sexton, Hayden, 6-1, 6-1.

Doubles

No. 1 -- Championship: Krumins/Gorman, Seaman, def. Sheetz/Sandstrom, 6-4, 2-6, 10-7. Seaman. Third: Ireland/Martinez, Washburn Rural, def. Boiteau/Ritter, Topeka High, 6-2, 6-1.

No. 2 -- Championship: Catlin/Haggard, Washburn Rural, def. Eckert/Lux, Seaman, 6-2, 6-3. Consolation: Glotzbach/O'Bray, Hayden. def. Ambrose/Ambrose, Topeka High, 6-3, 6-2.