St. Pius X girls tennis coach Stephen Kainz is realistic about what makes a successful high school team.
Kainz said most of his players take lessons outside of school. And with the entire regular season contained to September because of the coronavirus, that leaves a longer offseason.
“So any chance they get to play and get more instruction is great because the (high school) coaches’ time with them is getting more limited.”
That extra training is starting to pay off for the Lancers, who advanced a doubles team – 2020 graduates Sydney Proffer and Olivia Pettibone – to the Class 1 sectionals last season. The Missouri State High School Activities Association expanded girls tennis from two classes to three this fall, with St. Pius staying in Class 1. The Lancers will host District 3.
This season, St. Pius won the Windsor Doubles Tournament for the first time. All four Lancer doubles teams reached the finals of their brackets with senior Sofia Keene and sophomore Bella Barbagallo winning at No. 2 and seniors Brooke Pesek and Savannah Kraus taking No. 4.
Junior Sophia Stolzer is the No. 1 player on the Lancers this year. Stolzer has climbed up the rankings the last three seasons, going from the bottom of the junior varsity as a freshman to the last spot on the varsity in 2019.
“She has the groundstrokes, and even though she is No. 1 on our team, she is still improving as the year goes on,” Kainz said.
Junior Caroline Kurzweil (No. 2) is a “speed demon” who can get to most volleys and never seems to tire on the court, Kainz said. “She’s like the Energizer Bunny with turbo jets.”
Senior Ella Campbell (No. 3), a four-year varsity veteran, features a powerful backhand. Keene (No. 4) can absorb strong shots and return them with equal force.
“She (Keene) doesn’t get intimidated by people easily,” Kainz said.
At No. 5, Pesek is tough at the net and can hit the overhand smash, which makes her a good doubles player. Barbagallo holds the No. 6 spot in her first year on the varsity.
“You don’t want to mess with (Barbagallo),” Kainz said. “She has a really great understanding of when to be patient and when to go big on her shots.”
Kraus (No. 7) is a calm and cool doubles specialist. “All of her shots are super reliable,” Kainz said.
The No. 2 doubles team is Stolzer and Kurzweil and the No. 3 team is Pesek and Kraus.
“I think our team’s biggest strength is our competitiveness,” said Kainz, starting his sixth year as head coach. “None of the girls are happy losing a match, even the JV players. They usually know exactly what they need to work on after a match and do a really good job of taking instruction. They challenge each other and attempt to play through injuries before I stop them. They just really like to win.”
The Lancers (7-5) lost to St. Louis Notre Dame 5-2 in the Class 1 District 3 semifinals in Crystal City on Monday.
Owls jump up a class
Windsor moves from Class 1 to Class 2 under the new state alignment. The Owls will compete this month in District 1 at Cape Girardeau Central. They last won a district title in 2016.
The last Windsor player to qualify for the state tournament was Ellie Jablonowski in 2015, and the last state medalist was exchange student Annika Menke, who was fourth in 2014.
Senior Kenzie Sowa is the Owls No. 1 player in her fourth year on the varsity. She teams with senior Symphony Schodroski on No. 1 doubles. Sowa has good ground strokes. Schodroski, the No. 4 singles player, is known for her hustling style of play.
Sophomore Mia Steighorst moves up from last year’s JV team to No. 2 singles. Head coach Doc Carranza said Stieghorst is the team’s most improved player.
Junior Payton Raney, a lefthander, is at No. 3 singles. She makes good ground strokes and Carranza called her the most consistent player on the team.
Juniors Jade Allen (No. 5) and Miranda Marshall (No. 6) are both first-year varsity players. Allen will play singles only and Marshall is a serve-and-volley player with the best ball placement on the team, Carranza said.
The No. 2 doubles team of Stieghorst and sophomore Carman Peterson were JV partners a year ago. Junior Madison Chaney and senior Evie Gonzales are the No. 3 doubles team.
“All of our players have different strengths and weaknesses,” said Carranza, who at 23 years is one of the longest-tenured head coaches, in any sport, in Jefferson County. “It is their job, as with any sport, to get better in the offseason.
“Not speaking for other schools’ players, but in the years I’ve been coaching at Windsor, I see that players’ ground strokes come along earlier than their volleys or serve. The serve is always the last thing that a beginning tennis player, boy or girl, masters. You don’t see serve-and-volley players anymore. We have one that is trying to do it, but these days players are more likely to be at the baseline and try to out-hit you.”
The Owls (4-7-1) beat Sikeston 5-1 in the first round of the Class District 1 tournament in Imperial on Monday. Windsor plays Cape Girardeau Central today (Tuesday) in the district semifinals.