Rochester's 2025 high school girls tennis teams at a glance
Aug. 16—Head coach: Ben Maes. Assistants: Amy Halliday, Amy Vix, Suje Krecke.
Last year: 10-1 in the Big Nine Conference, 18-2 overall. After beating Lakeville South 4-3 in the Section 1-2A semifinals, Century lost 7-0 to eventual state champion Mayo in the section title dual.
Players to watch: Zoe Zhang, So., No. 1-2 singles; Catherine Li, eighth-grade, No. 1-2 singles; Jasmine Yu, Jr., No. 3-4 singles, 1 doubles; Tea McEachern, Sr., No. 4 singles, 1 doubles.
Outlook: Things are looking great for the Panthers. They return their entire lineup from last year, a team that went a lofty 18-2 overall, both losses to eventual state champion Mayo. That includes one of the more up-and-coming players in the state, eighth-grader Catherine Li. She'll play No. 1 or 2 singles for Century. At the other top singles spot will be a strong sophomore, Zoe Zhang. "We are still a very young team and this year will be another opportunity to grow individually and as a team," Century coach Ben Maes said. "Our goal this year is to improve on how we compete, how we recognize and exploit our opponent's weaknesses. We need to learn to focus more from the first to the last point. Eliminate free points and make opponents earn points. I am very excited again to work with this young group and to challenge them every day to get better."
Head coach: Jim Daly. Assistants: Jane Peloquin-Fink.
Last season: 6-5 Big Nine Conference, 8-6 overall. JM lost 6-1 to Century in the Section 1-2A quarterfinals.
Top returners: (check on these) Ajna Behlic, Sr., No. 1 or 2 singles; Kate Anderson, Sr., No. 1 or 2 doubles, Kendra Kampmeier, Sr., No. 1 doubles; Halle Meas, Sr., No. 1 or 2 doubles.
Outlook: The Rockets are sitting with an excellent set of senior captains in Ajna Behlic, Kate Anderson, Kendra Kampmeier and Halle Meas. They've been leading captains' practices all summer. "Those four being the leaders that they are makes me optimistic," JM first-year tennis coach Jim Daly said. "There will always be adversity in your season. But if you have high-character girls in your locker room, that is important because you have to be able to handle the highs and lows of a season." Behlic and Anderson will likely fill the top two spots in JM's singles lineup.
Head coach: Jeff Demaray. Assistants: Brett Pauley, Madison Couser, David Rider.
Last year: Mayo finished its season unbeaten and for the second straight year as the state's Class 2A champion. It beat Edina 5-2 in the championship dual. Claire Loftus, a senior a year ago, won her second straight singles state title, beating Elk River's Ava Nelson 4-6, 7-5, 2-0 in the final. Loftus finished her season 32-0. Mayo's doubles team of Keely Ryder and Malea Diehn finished third overall.
Players to watch: Aoife Loftus, Jr., No. 1 singles; Malea Diehn, Jr., No. 2 singles: Ana Medina, Sr., No. 3 singles; Eliana Elder, Jr., No. 4 singles:
Outlook: Two-time state defending champion Mayo has now won 50 straight matches, going back to the 2023 season. The Spartans have a real shot at keeping that winning streak going and of extending their state title streak to three straight years. Their singles lineup has a chance to be the best in the state and if it can sweep there, assures itself of another state title. Aoife Loftus, Malea Diehn and Ana Medina are all likely top-10 players in the state, with Loftus and Diehn both in the top five. Eliana Elder is likely in the top 15 overall. Diehn has taken a major leap from where she was a year ago and is a serious contender for a state title.
Head coach: Maurice Westerhouse. Assistant: Joe Boyer.
Last year: Lourdes finished 1-13, the lone win coming against Winona Cotter, 5-2.
Players to watch: Tatiana DuVaught, So., No. 1 singles; Marie Noser, Jr., No. 1 or 2 doubles, won three regular-season matches at No. 2 doubles; Avery Washnieski, Jr., No. 1 or 2 doubles, won three regular-season matches at No. 2 doubles; Vivienne Campbell, Fr., No. 3 or 4 singles, won three matches at No. 4 singles; Ruby Bedard, Fr., singles; Gaby Pham, Jr., singles.
Outlook: This is Maurice Westerhouse's first year as head coach. The goal is to be extremely competitive. This is a young Eagles team but more experienced than last year's one-win team. "The younger players are working hard, they are more confident, we have good team chemistry and leadership from our more experienced players/captains," Westerhouse said. "They've now been there before, the conference we play in is solid, but my job is to put them in position to succeed like I know they can. My goals would be to continue to build confidence, a lot of fundamentals, consistency and mental-toughness…we're also focusing on our future players as we want to foster long-term growth and also continue to boost unity with team-building events for a supportive environment for current and future athletes."
