Rochester tennis tops in the state

Rochester high school tennis now has to be considered second to none in Minnesota. And I’m talking about boys and girls combined.

The evidence is thick.

This fall, Minnesota produced the top two girls Class AA players in the state, both of them from Century. That was junior Kelsey Frechette finishing first in the state individual tournament, and seventh-grader Jessie Aney landing second. Then there was the all-Mayo state third-place match in doubles, with Jessica Edwards and Kylie Boyer beating Paige Becher and Jacqueline Cliby. In Class A tennis, there was the Lourdes doubles combination of Brittany Alexander and Margaret Pearson winning the state championship.

In girls team tennis, the evidence was just as great, with Lourdes finishing as state Class A champion and Mayo barely falling in the Class AA semifinals.

Then came the boys season this spring. Again, it was domination from Rochester teams, with Mayo winning the state Class AA championship for the second time in the last five years and Lourdes finishing second in Class A.

There was also terrific individual tennis from Rochester. Century senior Eric Frueh made it all the way to the state Class AA singles championship before losing, while Lourdes junior Robert Turlington fell in the semifinals to the eventual state champion.

Then there is Ingrid Neel, a Friedell Middle School seventh grader who played on the boys Mayo tennis team rather than the girls. And she more than held her own, mostly playing at No. 3 singles. She had one of Mayo’s four individual wins as the Spartans downed Wayzata 4-3 in the state team championship.

When it comes to Rochester high school tennis, there is talent galore. It’s also not subsiding. Next year could be even more impressive, with Mayo and Lourdes having a shot at their respective girls state championships, and those same schools in the running for boys titles.

— Pat Ruff