Waukee Northwest sweeps 2A; Pella, North Polk win 1A at Iowa boys state tennis tournament

The Iowa high school boys state tennis tournament in Class 2A culminated at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex in Iowa City on Wednesday while the 1A finals was held at Byrnes Park in Waterloo on Thursday.

Waukee Northwest swept the singles and doubles tournament in 2A for the second straight year. North Polk had its first duo win a 1A doubles title in program history

Here is a recap of the 2A and 1A state tennis finals.

Make that back-to-back state titles for Waukee Northwest’s Kaden Taylor

Last season, Kaden Taylor became the first Waukee Northwest tennis player to win a singles state championship. A year later, the high school senior returned to the big stage, defeating Waukee’s Quinn Monson (6-4, 6-1) to win his second-straight 2A state title.

“It’s a great feeling," Taylor said. "I really had to fight especially in the first set going down 4-3...He's a great player obviously and to kind of get through that, it really feels good."

Taylor went head-to-head with Monson, a former Waukee teammate with whom he won a doubles state title in 2021.

"We got to be state doubles champs three years ago and then to get to compete in the finals of state this year was definitely something that was exciting and something we were both looking forward to," Taylor said. "Obviously, it sucks that one of us had to come through, but it was a great match. He's a great player so it was fun."

Waukee Northwest’s Kellan Croatt, Jake Nelson earn second straight doubles title in 2A

When you reach the mountaintop once, why not do it again? Waukee Northwest’s Kellan Croatt and Jake Nelson entered this year’s state tournament as the defending doubles title holders in 2A.

The junior duo added to their championship resume with a win over Linn-Mar’s Malcolm Rice and Garrett Bauermeister in straight sets (6-2, 6-1).

“It feels really, really good,” Croatt said. “We’ve been together for years...but we’ve been double partners ever since we were in fifth grade, so it just feels amazing.”

Croatt and Nelson said their routine was similar to their state title run in 2023. They admitted that they faced a bit of pressure heading into this year's state tournament, but they found their rhythm during the second day of competition which led to another state championship trophy.

“It feels great being the second year now we’ve done this, and then this year was awesome for us at state," Nelson said. "We had all of our players make it to compete in Day 2 and another doubles team in the semifinals also, so this was awesome."

Pella's Jack Briggs takes home singles crown in 1A

Pella's Jack Briggs entered this year's state tournament with plenty of experience, having won a doubles title in 2023. He added a singles state title to his resume Thursday with a win over defending title-holder Caden Branum from Decorah in the 1A finals.

It was a battle between the two top-ranked players with Briggs earning a 6-4 edge in the first set. After Branum took the second set, 6-1, Briggs pulled out a 6-2 win in the winner-take-all set to earn the state crown. He becomes the first Pella boys tennis player to win a state singles title.

Ethan Moon, Easton Moon become first North Polk duo to win doubles title in 1A

You can check off a milestone for North Polk boys tennis as Ethan Moon and Easton Moon became the first pair to win a state doubles title in program history. They outlasted Waverly-Shell Rock's Benny Ramker and Luca Myers in straight sets (6-4, 6-2) to earn the doubles crown in 1A.

Marc Ray is the high school sports reporter for the Iowa City Press-Citizen. He can be reached atMARay@gannett.com, and on X, formerly Twitter, at@themarcszn.

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Waukee Northwest sweeps 2A; Pella, North Polk win big in 1A state tennis