Here are the top contenders, players to watch at the WIAA boys state tennis championships
The 100th Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association boys state individual tennis championships are Thursday through Saturday at Nielsen Tennis Stadium in Madison.
Play begins at 10:30 a.m. Thursday and will resume at 9 a.m. both Friday and Saturday. Championship matches will be played Saturday afternoon.
Tickets are $9 per day plus online fees and are available online on the WIAA website.
Here’s a look at area players who have qualified for the tournament.
TOP CONTENDERS
Nicholas Balthazor, De Pere
The senior comes in with a 22-0 record and is the No. 2 seed in Division 1 singles behind Oscar Corwin of Brookfield East. He is playing his first year of high school tennis after playing USTA junior circuit events the past few years. He won the Notre Dame sectional title at No. 1 singles with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Aiden Meixl of Kimberly.
Aiden Meixl, Kimberly
The sophomore has posted a 24-3 record and is the No. 8 seed in Division 1 singles. Meixl competed at state last year but lost his first-round match to Surya Arvind of Brookfield Central, who is the No. 5 seed this year.
Aidan Burich and Mason Olson, Green Bay Notre Dame
Burich, a junior, and Olson, a senior, are 24-8 and were given the No. 16 seed in Division 1 doubles. They won the No. 1 doubles title at the Notre Dame sectional with a 6-3, 3-6, (10-3) win over Kegan McDonough and Tudor Cristescu of De Pere. Burich and Olson also competed together at state last year and lost in the first round.
Satchel Moss and Ben Kotchen, Neenah
The senior duo is 23-4 and has the 11th seed in Division 1 doubles. They won the No. 1 doubles title at the Oshkosh North sectional with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Ayden Knuth and Cohen Newberg of Manitowoc Lincoln. Moss competed at state in doubles last year with Henry Werner and they won two matches.
Joshua Horak, Xavier
The junior is 17-5 and has the No. 7 seed in Division 2 singles. He lost in the No. 1 singles final at the Kohler sectional 6-2, 6-4 to Max Watchmaker of University School of Milwaukee, who is the No. 1 seed at state. Horak qualified for state last year and lost to Owen Plate of Plymouth in the first round.
Wesley Auth, St. Mary Catholic
The sophomore is 13-2 and has the No. 8 seed in Division 2 singles. He took third place at No. 1 singles at the Kohler sectional with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Ben McGuire of St. Mary’s Springs after losing to Watchmaker 6-3, 6-0 in the semifinals. Auth finished in fifth place at state last year in singles.
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Nick Bittner and Nate Hall, Xavier
The junior duo is 18-0 and is the No. 1 seed in Division 2 doubles. They took first place at No. 1 doubles at the Kohler sectional with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Miles Gourlay and Jack Gilpin of University School of Milwaukee. Bittner and Hall played together at state last year and finished in fourth place.
Grant Bergstrom and Harry Bergstrom, St. Mary Catholic
Grant, a junior, and Harry, a sophomore, are 5-4 and got the No. 7 seed in Division 2 doubles. They took fourth place in No. 1 doubles at the Kohler sectional. Grant Bergstrom played in doubles at state last year with Felipe Gaztelu and won two matches.
Gianni Frausto and Cavin Baltus, Plymouth
The freshman duo is 20-5 and is the No. 6 seed in Division 2 doubles. They took third place at No. 1 doubles at the Kohler sectional with a 4-6, 6-2, (10-1) victory over the Bergstroms.
Griffin Montes and Chaz Hoell, Kohler
Montes, a senior, and Hoell, a sophomore, are 12-8 and have the No. 8 seed in Division 2 doubles.
OTHER QUALIFIERS
Division 1
Singles – Logan Haferman, sr., Appleton West (13-6); Colin Belton, sr., D.C. Everest (15-2); David Murphy, sr., Neenah (10-16); Jacob Stinski, so., Oshkosh West (22-7); Matt Gugluizza, jr., Notre Dame (25-10); Chase Colucci, sr., West De Pere (17-11); Carl Hein, so., Neenah (20-8); Alex Thomas, fr., Notre Dame (30-4); Lleyton Batchelder, fr., Fond du Lac (9-7).
Doubles – Nathan Darrow, jr.-Karan Mandepudi, so., West De Pere (14-12); George Buerman, jr.-Tristan Sheldon, jr., Shawano (14-6); Ayden Knuth, jr.-Cohen Newberg, so., Manitowoc Lincoln (20-6); Pablo Cuene, jr.-Zeb Zifferblatt, jr., Notre Dame (24-6); Kegan McDonough, so.-Tudor Cristescu, fr., De Pere (9-2); Jack Rasmussen, sr.-Nyle Dar, sr., Oshkosh West (20-6); Hans Larson, sr.-Ryan Jorgensen, jr., Oshkosh West (17-12); Eli Reider, jr.-Andrew Nhan, so., Kimberly (16-8); Brady Hildreth, jr.-Andrew Werner, so., Neenah (17-5).
Division 2
Singles – Ben McGuire, sr., St. Mary’s Springs (13-7); Owen Plate, jr., Plymouth (21-2); Nana Kofi Norman, jr., Xavier (18-5); Jaren Baltus, jr., Plymouth (23-2); Nolan Villwock, so., Kohler (16-5).
Doubles – Ryan McEvoy, sr.-Gaven Marx, jr., Plymouth (21-3); Brady Ryan, sr.-Max Reinthaler, jr., Kohler (15-6); Sean Utrie, jr.-Mark Steinlage, sr., Xavier (15-5).
This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Players to watch at the Wisconsin high school state tennis tournament
