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girls tennis seniors

Westonka Girls Tennis Hosts Senior Celebration

By Kelly Velander, 09/27/22, 11:15AM CDT

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Players and parents gathered at the Westonka tennis courts on Sept. 20 for Senior Night to recognize and celebrate nine Westonka girls tennis seniors.

girls tennis seniors

Front row (from left): Kate Gilmore, Nora Sipprell, Sara Funderburk, Ellen Pruitt. Back row: Josie Moen, Savanna Newell, Kate Velander, Gretta Pioske, Sydney Leonard / Photo by Robert Photography

Players and parents gathered at the Westonka tennis courts on Sept. 20 for Senior Night to recognize and celebrate nine Westonka girls tennis seniors: captain Sara Funderburk, Kate Gilmore, captain Sydney Leonard, Josie Moen, Savanna Newell, Gretta Pioske, captain Ellen Pruitt, Nora Sipprell and captain Kate Velander. Each senior was presented by an underclassman and honored with their parents. A special tennis memory was shared by the seniors and their plans upon graduating as well as well wishes from their parents. After the presentation, the girls celebrated as a team with dessert and refreshments. 

Coach Rob Paul said:

“What a great group of girls! They have been committed and passionate about improving which makes them all natural leaders on the team. They really have set a great example for the rest of the girls over their years here at Mound Westonka. These girls also have bright futures beyond high school, and I know I can speak for the team and the rest of the coaching staff when I say we wish them well and look forward to watching their continued success on and off the tennis court."

The White Hawks traveled to Southwest Christian on Sept. 22 and had several close tiebreaker sets yet ended up winning all seven flights. At first singles was sophomore Savannah Paul, 3-6, 6-3 (6-2); second singles senior captain Kate Velander, 6-0, 6-0; third singles senior captain Ellen Pruitt, 3-6, 6-4 (6-1); fourth singles sophomore Reese Kasper, 6-3, 6-0; first doubles senior captain Sara Funderburk and senior captain Sydney Leonard, 6-4, 6-1; and second doubles junior Anna Wood and junior Cam Winther, 6-2, 6-1; third doubles senior Savanna Newell and freshman Suzie Marth; and fourth doubles junior Ally Eidsness and junior Cam Hargreaves played an exhibition match and won an eight-game pro set, 8-4. The JV team won 4-3.

The JV-B girls had a busy week with three matches starting on Sept. 21 against Wayzata on home courts with a 3-6 loss. On Sept. 22 they traveled to Minnetonka and lost 0-8. The team hosted Benilde-St. Margaret's on Sept. 26 and finished the week with a 5-4 win.

Come out and cheer on all the teams for their last week of regular season matches. All three teams play Chaska on Sept. 27 at 4 p.m. The varsity team will play at Chaska High School, while the JV and JV-B teams will host Chaska on home courts.

Sept. 28 includes match play against Chanhassen for all three teams at 4:15 p.m. Varsity will play at Pioneer Ridge Middle School in Chaska, while the JV will host at home courts and JV-B will play at Chanhassen High School.

The last regular season home varsity and JV home match will be on Sept. 29 against St. Peter at 4:15 p.m. Section matches for varsity will start the week of Oct 3. The JV-B team will travel to Orono on Oct. 3 and play at 4:15 p.m. for their last match of the season. Go White Hawks!