Nearly two months after their first high school practice, Freshmen Elena Wilner and Rebecca Davis accomplished a goal fit for veterans. The girls competed in the MSHSAA Class Two State Tennis Tournament, playing cross court of the most skilled athletes in Missouri.
“It was an amazing opportunity,” Davis said. “This is a sport that I love and state is the place I wanted to qualify. At first, we tried to tell ourselves it was a normal high school match but we were both nervous to play older players who had been there many years before.”
The freshman lost to Paige Smith and Eden Hoogveld of Jefferson City in the first round before defeating Kickapoo’s Meghan Zengel and Amanda Schmidt. In their final match of the day, St. Joseph’s duo claimed victory.
“I had pretty high expectations for how well we would do,” Davis said. “I know we both would’ve loved to place but we were just happy to be there and just wanted to have fun. We were close to pulling it out but unfortunately we didn’t.”
According to Wilner, competing against seasoned athletes was nothing new.
“I’ve played in a lot of tournaments with older kids, so that wasn’t so unusual, but it was great getting to watch and play against previous Missouri state champions,” Wilner said.
As a team, the girls won a district title this season; something Wilner is quick to give first year coach, Mr. Lee Hayes credit for.
“We have done so well because we have an amazing coach and a great team that loves to play,” Wilner said.
For Davis, the tournament serves as a stepping stone to the future.
“State has and will show me that working hard can take you places” Davis said. “Now that I’ve been through it once I’ve learned the ropes and I can only get better. I think this opportunity has made me want to be a leader for the team and show them the way.”
