By Chris Parker
There are many talented girls tennis players across our coverage area. Below are some of the girls tennis players to watch this season.
NOTE: The athletes are listed in alphabetical order.
JAMBOREE PHOTOS – CLICK HERE
ALL FALL SPORTS PREVIEWS – CLICK HERE
Brynley Brotherton, Kickapoo Junior
Brotherton and teammate Ester Choe formed one of the area’s top doubles teams last year. They went 19-3 and qualified for the Class 3 state tournament. Individually, Brotherton was also strong posting a 6-1 singles record.
Astrid Cardenas, Joplin Senior
Cardenas was limited to mostly doubles action last year due to an injury, but that did not hold her and partner Emma Watts back. The duo posted a 15-7 doubles record overall that included a berth to the Class 3 state tournament where they finished in the top 12.
Esther Choe, Kickapoo Senior
Choe earned a trip to the Class 3 state tournament with teammate Brynley Brotherton. The doubles team went 19-3 overall on the season. They went 1-2 at the state tournament. Individually, Choe went 6-2 in singles.
Elsie Crawford, Republic Senior
Crawford made history last year as the first Republic tennis player to earn a state medal. She finished sixth at the Class 2 State Tournament posting an overall singles record of 21-6. The senior is an all-court player who can topspin and slice the ball in a variety of ways to frustrate her opponents. She was 14-4 as a doubles player.
Jungeun Go, Willard Senior (20-5)
Go is one of the area’s top returning singles players after she earned an eighth place finish at the Class 2 state tournament last year. Go had a 20-5 record going into the state tournament where she finished 2-3 at state to claim eighth place.
DOWNLOAD THE O-ZONE APP NOW!
APPLE – CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD
ANDROID – CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD
McKinley Hedges, Bolivar Senior
Bolivar had a record-setting season last year finishing second as a team in Class 1, and Hedges was a big reason why. She held down the No. 4 spot and posted a 26-3 overall record on her way to a state qualification as a singles player.
Morgan Lewis, Republic Senior
Lewis combined with graduated partner Sedalia Shumaker to form Republic’s No. 2 doubles team that posted a 25-6 record and qualified for the Class 2 State Tournament where they finished ninth place overall. Individually, Lewis played No. 5 singles where she posted an 11-3 overall record.
Abigail McCord, Republic Senior
McCord was the No. 3 doubles player for Republic with a 12-3 record. Doubles was where she excelled with partner Wrigley Cook. McCord is an aggressive player at the net, which helped her and Cook qualify for the Class 2 State Tournament. She was the Nixa and COC Tournament champion with Cook at their respective flights.
Faith Taylor, Rolla Senior (9-7)
Taylor advanced to the Class 2 state tournament as a singles player in her junior season. She lost her first match before winning her second match. She came up just short of a spot on the podium losing her third match of the tournament
Emma Watts, Joplin Junior
Watts played No. 1 singles for Joplin where she went 7-3 overall. Her biggest successes came playing doubles with Astrid Cardenas. The duo finished in the top 12 at the Class 3 state tournament in doubles. They also did drop a single set on the way to a conference championship in addition to winning the Joplin Invitational.
