MINNEAPOLIS, Minn (KWAD) — Day One of the 2025 Girls State Tennis Tournament is wrapped up at the three State locations in Bloomington and Minneapolis. 8AA champions Fergus Falls and 8AAA champions Alexandria Area girls tennis teams earned victories in the consolation round of the MSHSL State Tournament, keeping their seasons alive by advancing to the consolation championships in their respective tournaments.
After having their hearts broken by Rock Ridge 4-3 in the Class AA quarterfinals, Fergus Falls rebounded in convincing fashion, defeating St. Peter 5–2 behind dominant doubles play and clutch singles performances. In singles, Ruby Ellison outlasted Kylie Southworth in a three-set thriller, winning 7–5, 0–6, 12–10 in a super tiebreak. Signe Millard also came through with a straight-sets win for Fergus Falls, 6–2, 7–5, while Layla Zosel and Ali Bredenberg both battled hard in competitive matches. The Otters sealed the match in doubles, where they swept all three flights in decisive fashion: Ashtyn Lill / Hattie Fullhart cruised to a 6–1, 6–0 victory, Carsyn Lill / Dillyn Lill rolled 6–3, 6–3, and Kaia Ness / Ella Black dominated 6–4, 6–0. With the win, Fergus Falls advances to the Class AA Consolation Championship, improving to 5–2 in overall match points for the day. The Otters will matchup with Delano in the Class AA Consolation Championship at noon on Wednesday.
The final four teams remaining for the Class AA title are #1 Mahtomedi vs #4 Rock Ridge and #2 Hill Murray vs #3 Blake. Class AA Semifinal matches begin at 8:00 am on Wednesday.
In AAA at the Baseline Tennis Center in Minneapolis, the Alexandria Cardinals survived a dramatic 4–3 duel against Cambridge-Isanti to earn their first-ever team victory at the Class AAA State Tournament after falling to Mounds View in the Quarterfinal Round 5-2. In singles play, Addison Stevenson opened with a hard-fought three-set win, 6–4, 1–6, 10–4, while her younger sister Kennedy Stevenson followed with a comeback of her own, rallying for a 2–6, 7–5, 10–6 victory. Bentley Kriel added another point with a steady 7–5, 6–3 win, and Samantha Whaley sealed the fourth Cardinal point, taking her match 6–1, 5–7, 10–7. Alexandria’s doubles teams held their own against tough Bluejacket pairings, with Ainsley Doom / Addy Sullivan scoring a tight 6–2, 4–6, 10–7 win at the No. 2 spot and Hope Stark / Alexis Dummer adding a straight-set victory, 6–3, 6–0, at No. 3. Alexandria will meet unseeded Stillwater in the Class AAA Consolation championship at noon on Wednesday.
The Class AAA State Semifinal begins at 8:00 on Wednesday, featuring #1 Rochester Mayo vs #4 Mounds View and #2 Edina vs #3 Minnetonka.
OTHER NOTES:
In Class A, the 8A Championship Thief River Falls fell to top-seeded Breck in the Class A Quarterfinals 6-1. After defeating five-seed Pine City 5-2, the Prowlers will also play for a Consolation Championship tomorrow morning, meeting unseeded Lake City at noon. #1 Breck will face #4 Litchfield, and #2 St. James will play #3 Foley in the Class A semifinals.