Team outlook
Class 5A
Boulder Panthers
Coach: Elizabeth Korevaar
The Scorecard: The Panthers return BoCoPreps and Class 5A player of the year Lily Chitambar, who won the No. 1 singles title last season at Gates Tennis Center. Chitambar dropped the first set of the state finals against Smoky Hill’s Valerie Negin before rallying for the lone singles title in program history. This spring she’ll be accompanied by No. 2 singles player Sandra Redak, who is a transfer student from Mexico. Other returning varsity players are Penny Jensen, Mara Nguyen, Jaqueline Christin, Willa Hancock DeRose and Evelyn Paul. Filippa Mudsam and Izze Barsch, meanwhile, will help fill out the lineup. Boulder finished third at the 5A tournament last year.
Broomfield Eagles
Coach: Melissa McGinness
The Scorecard: Broomfield welcomes a new coach in Melissa McGinness, who takes over for John Trask. She will inherit a team that did not score a point at the 5A state tournament last year, but one loaded with returning varsity players in 2022. Junior Elena Hristoff was the team’s ace last season, going 3-8 in No. 1 singles matches listed on MaxPreps. Holly Vanderberg was the No. 3 player, who along with the 3-dubs team of Sophie Christopher and Gianna Tedesco, had winning records. Vanderberg was listed at 7-6 in matches. Back from the doubles teams are Sofia Herrmann, Maya Fink, Bella Brady, Tedesco, Christopher and Emily Ho.
Fairview Knights
Coach: Jim Hensley
The Scorecard: Jim Hensley takes over for longtime coach Susan Stensrud, who headed the program for 17 years. The Knights, meanwhile, finished runner-up to Cherry Creek at last year’s 5A tournament. Up top, Quinn Bernthal looks to take over as the team ace after she was runner-up in No. 3 singles as a freshman. She fell to Cherry Creek’s Anika Sharma in three sets in the finals. Hensley also said Elle Middleton will return to the program after she last played at 3-singles for the program before the pandemic shutdown. In doubles, Virginia Gomulka and Lizzy Roth are back after they made up the No. 1 team that finished runner-up at state. Also returning is the 2-dubs team of Jane Roth and Maya Brakhage and the 3-dubs of Mia Grayson and Emily Hao, both of whom finished second at state. Rose Aweida and Clara Kursinski are listed at 4-doubles.
Legacy Lightning
Coach: Laura Zlogar
The Scorecard: Eileen Tran reached the 5A state tournament at No. 1 singles, eventually bowing out to Ralston Valley’s Ally Lowe in the opening round. It had been a strong junior campaign for Tran, who also won the Broomfield Invite and a regional title. The Lightning also have back their 2-singles player Lily Kasic, who reached the state tournament in 2021. Kate Tsai will play 3-singles early on after she was 3-dubs last year as a freshman. The doubles teams will be made up of Megan Mari, Gracie Stapleton, Emma Nguyen, Ava Klein, Kady Vu, Emily Smith, Sydney Williams and Megan Anthony. “I expect to build on last year’s success,” Zlogar said. “The bar is high as we qualified all positions for the state tournament. I also expect to be competitive with the leading teams in our conference.”
Monarch Coyotes
Coach: Billy Downs
The Scorecard: Downs, in his third season, didn’t send anyone to the state tournament last season, but there is plenty of reason for optimism for the Coyotes in 2022. “We will compete with other teams,” Downs said, “and our No. 1 singles will have a nice chance to move forward in regionals and state.” At 1-singles is Sidney Kuhl, who played both 1 and 2 singles last year. Below her is Jamie Byther, who Downs listed at 2-singles, and Annabel Thrash is at 3. The doubles team returnees from last year are Meg Kumar and Julia Bethune (1-doubles), Carly Gunning and Ally Younkin (2D) and Langley Nakari (3D). Downs also said the program is bringing in 15 new players.
Class 4A
Centaurus Warriors
Coach: Julie Daniel
The Scorecard: Daniel leads a program she says is continually growing heading into her sixth season in charge. At the top for her team is Lassie Moore, who is back as the team’s ace and was already named captain. She “worked quite a bit on her game in the offseason,” Daniel said. Other returning players include sophomore Jaden Crawley, senior Emily Howard, and juniors Sara Nickerson and Reese Burke. “The team is enthusiastic about their tennis and their team,” Daniel added. “We are looking forward to another season developing the tennis in our very competitive region.”
Erie Tigers
Coach: Jeff Giger
The Scorecard: Giger just finished his first stint at the school, leading the Tigers to the 4A state title football game in the fall. Now he is taking over the girls tennis program, which had been headed by Eric Farran. “We are pretty young but feel that we can push to get a few girls qualified for state,” Giger said. “Our goal is to win the league and play our best at the end of the season.” Laina Kitlowski is back as the team’s ace after a nice debut at No. 1 singles last season as a freshman. Laney Bowers (2S) and Campbell Moore (3S) also return. The doubles team returnees include Hannah Pariano and Makayla Carter (1D), as well as Savannah Vennard (2D). Others to watch include Josephine Orona, Francie Mueller and Danika Bahensky.
Frederick Warriors
Coach: Mark Allen
The Scorecard: Allen, in his fifth season as the girls coach, believes this team is the best he’s had in either boys or girls at the high school. “We return pretty much our whole varsity and have added some serious competition for varsity spots,” said Allen, noting that he has 28 girls on the team and many are from the softball, basketball and volleyball programs. “Our goal is always to get better every day/match and win. I really think we have a good team from top down and we will win a lot of our matches.” Up top again is Maria Bello (1S). She will be joined on the singles line by Kaitlyn Parko (2S) and Naia Maldonado (3S). The doubles teams include Ali Davis (1D), Abby Crum and Savanna Staff (2D), Lucy Rothe and Rachael Schmidt (3D), and Maddie Fauerbach (4D). Others to watch include Hailey Simmons (1D) and Maggie Bruhn (4D). The Warriors beat Northridge in their first match on March 8, 7-0.
Longmont Trojans
Coach: Mike Merz
The Scorecard: Lauren Pavot reached the state field as sophomore after her freshman season was wiped out due to the pandemic. She bowed out to Cheyenne Mountain’s Maya Michalski, who ended up reaching the state semifinals. Now, Pavot is back for her junior season. She is joined by varsity returnees Stella Rulon, a sophomore who played both 2 and 3 singles last season, and senior Lilah Ruiz. Another name to watch will be freshman Sophia Barandiaran. “We are a young team with a lot of raw talent,” said Merz, who is in his 18th season as the program’s leader.
Mead Mavericks
Coach: Ben Holskin
The Scorecard: Mead opened the season with a 5-2 win over Greeley West last week. The Mavericks’ entire singles lineup — Mackailee Longobricco, Katie Couch and Holly Richardson — won. Longobricco is back as the team’s ace, while Couch was on 3-dubs last year and Richardson was a 2-dubs player. At doubles, Emma Shipley and Maggie Oster (1D) and Lauren Bell and Rebekah Rayl (2D) won their first match. Bella Allen and Raelee Longobricco (3D) and Kristen Kline and Sophie Wasden (4D) dropped their first match. “Coming into the year I knew we had lost a lot of experienced seniors,” said Holskin, who noted losing two singles players and three from doubles. “But within the first few days of practice, I could tell that the returning freshmen, sophomores and juniors had improved significantly in the offseason, which was really exciting to see.”
Niwot Cougars
Coach: Aimee Keronen
The Scorecard: Niwot returns its top two players from last year in junior Alys Pop and senior Anna Sallee. It graduated 3-singles player Emily Creek, who won a state title. In 2021, Pop reached the 4A No. 1 singles semifinals before bowing out to Mullen’s Lauren Manwiller. Salle got all the way to the finals at 2-singles, losing in a tight three sets to Palmer Ridge’s Tessa Rothwell. Returning from the doubles teams, meanwhile, are seniors Georgia Lang, Claire Butcher and Julia Price, and sophomores Tracy Yu, Harper Behmer and Riley Markham. A few freshmen to watch out for include Sofia Blair, Samantha Zacky, Anne Haley and Cassie Chen. “We are very young but talented,” Keronen said. “One of the most athletic, competitive group of girls this program has seen.”
Silver Creek Raptors
Coach: Sara Whiteley
The Scorecard: Whiteley is back for her ninth year, and back for her is a talented group of players who had nice success in 2021. Mimi Emerson won the regional championship at 3-doubles and finished second at the 4A state tournament. Keely Weber finished second at regionals (3-singles), while Liana Kelly (1-doubles) and Shenandoah Waugh and Viktoria Garcala (2-doubles) did the same. Also back are juniors Olivia Wisecup and Alexandra Gutierrez. Another name to watch on the Raptors is freshman Katie Reitz. “Goal is to return to regional placing and send more team members to the state tournament,” Whiteley said. The Raptors beat Greeley Central 7-0 in their first match of the season.
Skyline Falcons
Coach: Rocky Nelson
The Scorecard: Skyline welcomes a new coach to the program in Rocky Nelson. He inherits a team that returns five varsity players from last season, he said. Aurora Dallocchio, a sophomore, is listed at No. 1 singles. Reagan Reed (2S) and Brianna Mendoza-Leon (3S) make up the rest of the singles line. Kinsey Kaczmarek and Amber Ticse Lopez make up the 1-doubles team. “I’m excited to see our newcomers improve as the season progresses and to watch the growth of our returning players as they continue to compete at a higher level,” Nelson said. “Our goal for the season is to have as much fun as we can and turn our newcomers into lifelong tennis players.” Others to watch include Gabrielle Kelley (2D) and Serenity McCoy (4D).
Class 3A
Dawson Mustangs
Coach: Kathy Benninghoff
The Scorecard: Lila Travis is back for Dawson after she won her regional and got as far as the 3A state semifinals last year at No. 1 singles. Travis, who eventually bowed out to Colorado Academy’s Anna Jordaan, led the Mustangs to a regional championship and a third-place finish at state. The other returning players for the Mustangs are Kathleen Donohue and Kate Aldworth. Others to watch include freshman Mia Jones. “For the first time in over a decade, Dawson has a new slate of players with the exception of Lila Travis,” Benninghoff said. “Our areas of focus are relentless improvement, hard work, and good fun.”
Holy Family Tigers
Coach: John Alderman
The Scorecard: Holy Family won a region title at each line last season, then went on to finish fourth at the 3A state tournament. The Tigers graduated five seniors from that team but they return a lot of talent. Among them are Laura Baker (2S), Audrey Brower (3S), Sarah Stonehocker and Clara Meisner (1D), Avery Alderman (2D), and Ava Silverstein (3D). Freshman Annabelle Kenny will be the team’s ace this season. As for the rest of the lineup, it includes freshman Raelynn Pickup (2D), junior Katelyn Morris (3D), sophomore Kylie Horning and junior Alesandra Wise (4D). Alderman, who is taking the place of Brittany Storgaard (maternity leave), said he wants to return all lines to the state tournament this season and be in the mix in the team race on the second day.
Justice Phoenix
Coach: TJ Cole
The Scorecard: Justice High School will have a girls tennis program after it was cut last year due to the pandemic, Cole said. The Phoenix are led by seniors Kenzie Salee and Erika Marquez, who will head up 1-doubles. Trinity Williams (junior) and Kristina Castenada (sophomore) will play at the 2-spot. From there, Cole said the rest of the team is beginners at the sport and they “may just have a gem or two that will surprise.”
Peak to Peak Pumas
Coach: Eric Carlson
The Scorecard: Quinn Burns and Kendyl Fanger return for the Pumas after they made up the No. 1 doubles team last year. Then, they didn’t bow out until the semifinals at the 3A state tournament. Now, Burns is slated at the No. 2 singles spot early in the season, while Fanger is playing in doubles. Other returnees include juniors Maya Natarajan, Amanda Skinner and Megan Skinner. Carlson said he is also excited about three talented freshmen in Lena Crotty, Sydney Lewis and Ranye Ezenekwe. “We are extremely young and I’m excited to see how we fare and improve along the way,” the coach said. “Our goal is to control what we can control and that starts with effort, attitude and preparation.”
Prospect Ridge Miners
Coach: Ari Finkelstein
The Scorecard: Finkelstein is in his sixth season as coach of the Miners. He leads a team that returns a strong talent in Parker Rodriguez, who went to state at 3-singles in 2021 and will play at the 2-spot this season. Also back are sophomore Emma Anderson (3S), as well as seniors Hope Smith, Rylie Jacobs, Sydnie Jacobs, Lauren Sherrets, Kegan Reeves and Elizabeth Rooks. The team’s ace this season will be Omi McGee, a talented freshman player. “We should have a deep and mentally tough team this year with 7 returning seniors on varsity,” Finkelstein said. “We hope to finish the season with a winning record and then send some girls to state.”
Cream of the crop: 2021 BoCoPreps.com all-region team
First Team (Name, 2020-21 class, school)
Alexis Bernthal, Sr., Fairview; Quinn Bernthal, Fr., Fairview; Lily Chitamber, Jr., Boulder; Emily Creek, Sr., Niwot; Alexis Gilio, Sr., Dawson; Anna Sallee, Jr., Niwot; Natalie Stone, Sr., Fairview; Virginia Gomulka (So.)/Elizabeth Roth (So.), Fairview; Jane Roth (Fr.), Maya Brakhage (Fr.), Fairview; Mia Grayson (Jr.)/Emily Hao (Jr.), Fairview.
Honorable mention
Singles: Fabi Alvarez, Sr., Legacy; Laura Baker, Fr., Holy Family; Lindsey Bartoletta, Sr., Holy Family; Gabrielle Gutierrez, Sr., Silver Creek; Lily Kasic, Jr., Legacy; Emily Lindoerfer, Sr., Holy Family; Lucie Paul, Sr., Boulder; Alys Pop, So., Niwot; Lauren Pavot, So., Longmont; Parker Rodriguez, Jr., Prospect Ridge Academy; Eloise Shehan, Sr., Dawson; Eileen Tran, Jr., Legacy; Lila Travis, Jr., Dawson; Keely Weber, Jr., Silver Creek.
Doubles: Sadie Bren (Sr.)/ Sarah Stonehocker (So.), Holy Family; Audrey Brower (Jr.)/Clara Meisner (Fr.), Holy Family; Ava Silverstein (So.)/ Avery Alderman (Fr.), Holy Family; Maya Fink (Jr.)/Makenna Kemper (So.), Broomfield; Gracie Stapleton (Jr.)/Megan Mari (So.), Legacy; Emma Nguyen (So.)/Aisha Prasad (Sr.), Legacy; Mara Nguyen (Jr.)/ Mahima Gurung (Sr.), Boulder; Kate Tsai (Fr.)/Ava Klein (Jr.), Legacy; Bella Brady (Jr.)/Amanda Miller, Broomfield; Rose Aweida (Jr.)/Lilian Ma (Sr.), Fairview; Lili Tedesco (Sr.)/Gretchen Metz (Jr.), Broomfield; Kady Vu (Jr.)/Emily Smith (So.), Legacy; Caitlyn Fong (Jr.)/Georgia Lang (Jr.), Niwot; Lily Drouhard (Sr.)/Jaylyn Westenbroek (Sr.), Mead; Claire Montgomery (Sr.)/Liana Kelly (So.), Silver Creek; Tori Garcala (Jr.)/Shenandoah Waugh (Jr.), Silver Creek; Tehya Laughlin (Sr.)/Tracy Yu (Fr.), Niwot; Zoey Shutes (Sr.)/Lilah Ruiz (Jr.), Longmont; Meredith Emerson (So.)/Meghna Ravi (Sr.), Silver Creek; Gracie Jennings (Sr.)/Annika Olson (Sr.), Longmont; Sophie Drouhard (Sr.)/Maggie Oster (So.), Mead; Claire Butcher (Jr.)/Harper Behmer (Fr.), Niwot; Kendyl Fanger (Jr.)/Quinn Burns (Fr.), Peak to Peak; Megan Smolky (Sr.)/Kelly Whitehill (Sr.), Holy Family; Anna Wittenberg (Sr.)/Paige Howenstein (Sr.), Dawson; Lindsay Abramson (Jr.)/Angelina Sala (Sr.), Dawson; Paris Kiehl (Sr.)/Sophie Kiehl (Sr.), Peak to Peak; Amanda Skinner (So.)/Megan Skinner (So.), Peak to Peak.
