Seniors Hannah Oie and Kayla Jahn entered the 2024 State Tennis tournament unseeded and had the enormous task of taking on the #1 doubles team from The Blake School, Camilla Pardo and Nora Ibrani. That did not faze the pair of Eagles as they defeated the private school duo in a three-set thriller, 6-3, 2-6, 6-3.
With the win, Oie and Jahn advanced to the quarterfinals where they lost to Therese Bauer and Rylee Thieren, of Lake City, 6-4, 6-1.
In what is a strange and maybe a cruel rule at state tennis, if you don’t win your second match on the first day, you are eliminated from further competition. For Oie and Jahn, that means there will be no chance to continue, or play in the consolation round.
Even though it will be a disappointment to end the year on a loss, the pair of seniors made quite a splash in their final year of play and should be immensely proud of their effort, especially considering they made the state tournament two years in a row.
“Hannah and Kayla were able to play at a high level and maintain it throughout the match,” said Coach Brant Hacker. “They had an excellent mental game, staying in the moment and focusing on each point rather than being distracted by playing on a big stage. By the middle of the first set, when it was obvious that Blake wasn’t going to get an easy win, they were clearly rattled. Overall, it was some of the best tennis Kayla and Hannah played this season at exactly the right time to take down the #1 seeded team.”
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Oie and Jahn were the first in 30 years to knock off a No. 1 seed in the first round of the Class A Tournament.
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