CLASS 6A GIRLS TENNIS PLAYERS TO WATCH IN 2025
 

 
MADELYNNE ABEL, BLUE VALLEY NORTHWEST
 
Abel earned her first class 6A state singles berth last year and made the most of it. After placing sixth at regionals, Abel placed ahead of two of the players that finished ahead of her at regionals. She won her first match before falling to Blue Valley’s Morgan Zuba in the second round. Abel rebounded with two wins in the consolation bracket to secure a state medal and ended up placing 10th after a loss to Free State’s Camille Lee in the ninth-place match. She finished with a 17-13 record and will look to improve on that mark this year as a senior, hoping to give the Huskies a strong singles presence to go with the top returning doubles team in Class 6A, Maryam Wambi and Cammie Peng, who were third at state last year.
 

 
HEIDI BAILLOS, OLATHE NORTHWEST
 
After transferring from Mill Valley to Olathe Northwest last summer following a ninth-place finish at state in singles as a sophomore, Baillos was an impact addition that helped the Ravens ascend to the top of Class 6A and capture the first team championship in program history. Baillos posted a 25-6 record last season occupying the No. 2 singles spot for the Ravens for the bulk of the season with eventual 6A singles champion Mithila Dixit holding down the No. 1 spot. Two of Baillos’ losses came to Dixit and two others came to Olathe West’s Lindsay Ruder, who finished fourth at state and whom Baillos beat at regionals. Baillos lost to Ruder in the state quarterfinals, but stormed through the backside to finish fifth. She holds a 69-26 career singles record and won the No. 2 singles titles at the KC Invitational and Olathe City Championships last year and likely will take over as the Ravens’ No. 1 singles player this fall.
 

 
CATHERINE BELTRAME AND MOLLY MCDERMED, SHAWNEE MISSION EAST
 
With the graduation of both of its state-placing doubles teams from 2023, East had some big holes to fill last fall. Beltrame and McDermed stepped up to fill one of the vacant doubles spots and the duo posted the best record for a Lancer team last fall, finishing with a 22-4 mark. Their bid to reach the state semifinals ended with a three-set loss to Blue Valley Northwest’s Maryam Wambi and Cammie Peng, but Beltrame and McDermed stormed through the consolation bracket, winning three straight matches to finish fifth. While the duo could stay together to build off their success from a year ago, Beltrame, who has 59 career wins, also could take on a new partner with teammate Nell Stechschulte looking for a new partner after taking fourth with now-graduated Breanne Quigley a year ago. Beltrame also runs cross country for the Lancers. McDermed, who made the varsity lineup last year as a freshman, is the younger sister of former state doubles placer Eleanor, who took third at state in 2023 with doubles partner Katie Murphy.
 

 
MADELINE DETERS, TOPEKA HIGH
 
After going 18-7 and qualifying for state in singles her freshman year, Deters endured a bit of a sophomore slump in 2023 and posted just a 13-10 mark and missed out on a return trip to state. Last year as a junior, Deters not only bounced back but enjoyed the best season of her career. She won titles at the Wamego and Topeka High Invitationals and the Topeka West Quad and returned to the Class 6A state tournament after placing third at regionals. Deters won her first two matches at state before falling to eventual state champion Mithila Dixit of Olathe Northwest in the quarterfinals. Deters went 3-3 at state and finished seventh, capping a 27-9 season – the most wins by a Trojan singles player since Whitney Holloman in 2012.
 

 

SYRA HONARGOHAR AND ERIN O’NEAL, SHAWNEE MISSION NORTHWEST
 
Honargohar and O’Neal became Northwest’s first Class 6A state tournament qualifiers since 2019 when the duo of Michaela Crowe and Naeley Torline finished eighth in doubles. The Cougar tandem finished sixth at their regional to earn their state berth. After losing their first match at state, Honargohar and O’Neal got on a little roll and won two straight matches to clinch a state medal. They wound up placing 11th, beating Blue Valley North’s Maryn Triplett and Aylin Ulusarac in the 11th-place match. They finished with a 19-11 record on the season.
 

 

 
NEENAZ IRANI AND ANNABEL WARWICK, BLUE VALLEY
 
Irani and Warwick enjoyed an outstanding season coming in as a freshman duo for the Tigers last year. They finished fourth at their 6A regional to clinch a state berth and then not only won their first match at state but upset No. 7 seed and regional champions Madison Fluis and Danica Miller of Maize 6-1, 6-1 in the second round. After falling to eventual state runners-up Aashritha Musti and Chandana Vijaykumar of Blue Valley West in the quarterfinals, Irani and Warwick won their first consolation match, fell in the consolation semifinals and then beat Olathe South’s Reilly Bingesser and Macy Caldwell in the seventh-place match. They finished the season with a respectable 18-7 record.
 

 
CAMILLE LEE, FREE STATE
 
Lee was one of two singles Class 6A state qualifiers for the Firebirds last year along with fellow returning senior Ann Pilakowski – the state berth her third straight. For the second straight year, Lee worked her way to a state medal, improving by one place to a ninth-place showing after taking 10th as a sophomore in 2023. Lee went 5-2 at state with her losses to Shawnee Mission East’s Ishya Bhavsar and Olathe Northwest’s Heidi Baillos and she beat Blue Valley Northwest’s Madelynne Abel in the ninth-place match to cap a 27-9 season. Lee could move to doubles this year – she qualified for state in doubles as a freshman -- but likely will return to her No. 1 singles spot for the Firebirds.
 

 
HANNAH MICHEEL, JUNCTION CITY
 
The daughter of Blue Jay tennis coach Shaun Micheel, Hannah built off a strong freshman season in 2023 that saw her qualify for state in singles. Not only did Micheel return to state last year, she did so as a regional champion. Micheel lost in the second round at state for the second straight year, but this time, came back strong in the consolation bracket, winning two straight matches to clinch her first state medal. Michell wound up with an 11th-place finish and finished the season with a 26-8 record. Micheel was the Centennial League champion in singles last year.
 

 

CAMMIE PENG AND MARYAM WAMBI, BLUE VALLEY NORTHWEST
 
Coming off a Class 6A state runner-up finish in doubles with sister Saraphina, Maryam Wambi went into her junior season looking for a new partner. She eventually settled in with fellow junior Cammie Peng, who also had lost her partner (Tindra Lind) from a state qualifying doubles team that didn’t place. The duo enjoyed moderate success during the regular season, but began to click in the postseason, taking second at regionals to eventual state runners-up Aashritha Musti and Chandana Vijaykumar of Blue Valley West. They ran into the Jaguar tandem again in the state semifinals and fell 6-2, 6-3. Wambi and Peng bounced back to win their last match and finish third and finish the season with a 15-7 record. If they stay together they will be the top returning duo in 6A doubles this year with the graduation of state champions Hannah Carney and Riley Terhune of Olathe Northwest and Musti from the West combo.
 

CHLOE PTACEK, GARDEN CITY

Ptacek teamed with now-graduated Jocelyn Kennedy to reach the state tournament in doubles for the second straight season last year. They opened state with a win over Kam Stubbs and Lillian Hoffman from Wichita Northwest before falling to Washburn Rural’s Emerie Catlin and Isabelle Haggard. Ptacek and Kennedy finished 2-2 at state and went 25-11 on the season. They earned runner-up honors at the Derby regional to Maize’s Madison Fluis and Danica Miller. Ptacek has a 60-22 career record in doubles. The senior will help lead a Garden City squad that is looking for a ninth consecutive Western Athletic Conference title.
 

 
EMERY RAND, OLATHE NORTHWEST
 
Rand cracked Olathe Northwest’s varsity lineup as a freshman last year, teaming with senior Sammie Van Zante to post a 26-9 mark as the Ravens’ No. 2 doubles team behind the state championship tandem of Hannah Carney and Riley Terhune. Rand and Van Zante had to face their teammates in the Class 6A state tournament quarterfinals and lost 6-2, 6-1, but bounced back with two straight wins before falling to Shawnee Mission East’s team of Molly McDermed and Catherine Beltrame in the fifth-place match to finish sixth. All eight losses Rand and Van Zante suffered to Kansas teams came to their teammates and Beltrame and McDermed, losing to both at the Sunflower League meet to take fourth. With Van Zante having graduated, Rand will have a new partner this season and likely will mix with a handful of options to find the right combination.
 

PENELOPE REED, BLUE VALLEY NORTH
 
Last year's Class 6A singles title was won by a newcomer as Olathe Northwest’s Mithila Dixit parlayed her only prep season into a state title. This year's title could very well go to another high school newcomer, albeit in a somewhat different fashion. An incoming freshman for Blue Valley North, Reed has an accomplished career on the USTA circuit as a four-time Level 4 singles champion in the Missouri Valley Sectionals and Nationals and is a four-time singles runner-up in Level 3. Reed is ranked as the No. 80 14-year-old in the nation and is No. 2 in the Missouri Valley Sectional and No. 1 in the Heart of America region. That immediately puts her in the conversation for this year's crown, particularly with onlly one of last year's top-four finishers returning. She joins returning Class 6A state singles qualifier Prisha Dalal to give the Mustangs a strong singles combo as they come off a third-place team finish at state last year but losing state singles runner-up Shelby Smith.
 

 
LINDSAY RUDER, OLATHE WEST
 
A three-time Class 6A state qualifier in singles, Ruder has won at least 20 matches all three seasons of her high school career as well. She came up one win shy of placing as a freshman in 2022, but has earned a state medal each of the past two seasons. Ruder finished seventh at state as a sophomore after losing in the quarterfinals, but last year won her quarterfinal match over Olathe Northwest’s Heidi Baillos in a 6-2, 5-7, 6-1 three-set thriller that avenged a regional loss to the Raven standout. Ruder fell in the semifinals 6-1, 6-1 to Blue Valley North’s Shelby Smith and then lost 6-1, 6-1 in the third-place match to Shawnee Mission East’s Ishya Bhavsar – who had beaten her in the 2023 quarterfinals – to finish fourth. Ruder finished the season 28-7 and is the top returning singles player from last year’s tournament. She also was a member of West's Class 6A state championship softball team last spring.
 

 
NELL STECHSCHULTE, SHAWNEE MISSION EAST
 
The younger sister of four-time state doubles champion Greta Stechschulte, Nell set to making her own name as a doubles player for the Lancers last fall as East had to replace all four doubles players from the 2023 state championship team. Stechschulte partnered with senior Breanne Quigley and the duo helped the Lancers maintain a strong presence in doubles at the state tournament. While East’s other doubles team of Catherine Beltrame and Molly McDermed wound up with a better overall record, Stechschulte and Quigley placed higher at state, reaching the state semifinals before falling 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-5) to eventual state champions Hannah Carney and Riley Terhune of Olathe Northwest in a thriller. The Lancer duo then lost in the third-place match to Blue Valley Northwest’s Maryam Wambi and Cammie Peng to place fourth and finish with a 19-8 record. With Quigley graduating, Stechschulte will be looking for a new partner for her junior season.
 

 
CHANDANA VIJAYKUMAR, BLUE VALLEY WEST
 
Things will look a little different for Vijaykumar this season after losing doubles partner Aashritha Musti to graduation. The duo had teamed together since Vijaykumar’s arrival as a freshman in 2023 and placed fifth at the Class 6A state tournament in their first season together. Last year, the duo captured a regional title and continued the momentum at state, reaching the state championship match. Though they lost 6-3, 6-2 to Olathe Northwest’s Hannah Carney and Riley Terhune, they still posted the highest finish by a Jaguar doubles team since Gwyn Gifford and Olivia Kurzban took second in 2018 and posted a 26-6 overall record. Vijaykumar is the lone returning state qualifier for the Jaguars this season and could move to singles.

NOTE: Classifications for the 2025-26 school year had not been released at the time of publication. Players featured could potentially fall into a different classification once those have been determined.