CLASS 4A GIRLS TENNIS PLAYERS TO WATCH IN 2025
 

 

 
AVERY BAER AND MEREDITH KUNTZ, CHAPMAN

In their first year paired together, Baer and Kuntz got off to a somewhat slow start as Kuntz recovered from an early-season surgery. But once she was fully back the duo got into a serious groove. They won two regular-season tournaments before capturing the North Central Kansas League doubles title. Baer and Kuntz finished runner-up at regionals to eventual state runners-up Emily Sheetz and Sophia Wichman of Hayden. After getting upset in the second round of the Class 4A state tournament, Baer and Kuntz showed some grit on the backside of the bracket, pulling out two 8-6 victories and a 9-8 tiebreaker win on their way to a fifth-place finish, going 5-1 at the tourney to cap a 29-6 season. They will be one of the top returning teams in tact from last year’s state tournament this fall.
 

 
KADENCE BALL, PARSONS
 
The Vikings’ lone returning Class 4A state qualifier from 2023, Ball took on a new doubles partner last fall after losing previous partner Brookelynn Barger to graduation. Ball teamed with Manaye Ryan and they put together a 15-8 mark heading into the state tournament. After going 1-2 with Barger at state in 2023, Ball and Ryan knocked off Southeast Kansas League rivals Jacqueline Smoot and Rylee Smith of Chanute in the second round in a 6-3, 5-7, 10-8 three-set second-round thriller. They fell in the quarterfinals and then lost their first consolation match before eventually finishing with a 10th-place showing and a 18-11 overall record. Ball will be looking for her third partner in three years for her final season and it could be doubles qualifier Laila Haviland with her partner, Heidi Shultz, moving to singles this season.
 

 
LEAH BURNETT, CHANUTE
 
Playing in the No. 2 singles spot for Chanute last year behind fellow returner Ella Guernsey, Burnett was a solid complement that showed at regionals where she finished third behind Independence’s Ava Morris and Guernsey, qualifying for state for the first time as a sophomore. She posted a 30-7 overall record, including a 9-5 mark in No. 1 or open singles competition. Burnett captured titles at four tournaments, including the No. 1 singles title at one of Chanute’s home meets. She and Guernsey both return to give the Blue Comets the top returning singles players in the Southeast Kansas League with a move to doubles also a possibility after the graduation of Rylee Smith from a sixth-place doubles partnership with returner Jacqueline Smoot.
 

 
CRUZ CORNEJO, WELLINGTON
 
A two-time regional champion, Cornejo enters her senior season most likely seeking a doubles replacement for Kadynce Aufdengarten, who graduated after the tandem finished third in Class 4A last fall. They posted a 22-7 record, falling to eventual champions Callie Schlorholtz and Brooklyn Mattix of Independence in the state semifinals. Cornejo, who missed her freshman season with an injury, partnered with her older sister Lyric two years ago to finish sixth in 4A doubles, capping a 28-7 campaign. Cornejo helped the Crusaders place fourth in 4A last fall.
 

  
ELLA DANIEL, BISHOP MIEGE

A powerful left-hander, Daniel made quite a debut as a freshman in 2023, capturing a Class 4A regional singles title and riding that momentum to a third-place finish at the state tournament. Last year, she won three tournament titles during the regular season before taking second at regionals to three-time state champion Ainzley Zulueta of Hayden. She still earned the No. 6 seed in the 4A state singles draw, but was upset 6-4, 6-3 in her first match by Chanute’s Ella Guernsey. Daniel won two straight consolation matches before falling to 2023 state singles runner-up Ava Morris of Independence and eventually settled for a 10th-place finish. Daniel finished with a 26-11 record after going 23-5 as a freshman. She’ll look to return to the top four in 4A this year, though three of last year’s top-four finishers are back.
 

FINLEY EDWARDS AND KAYLEE FELKER, SCOTT CITY

Edwards and Felker are the reigning Great West Activities Conference doubles champions, defeating teammates Ella Frank and Marisa Alvarado in the finals. They made a trip to the 4A state tournament, where they went 0-2, falling to Hayden's Izzy Glotzbach/Avery O'Bray and Chapman’s Avery Baer/Meredith Kuntz. They had a solid regional performance last season. After losing to top-seeded Avery Unruh and Quinn Leibl from McPherson in the regional semis, Felker and Edwards bounced back to beat Clay Center’s Ella Kramer/Annalea Hendrickson in the third place match. They finished with a 23-8 doubles record last year and are 48-16 in their career. Edwards and Felker, both seniors, will play together this fall for the third straight season. 

GRACE FUNK, HAYDEN
 
Funk split time between singles and doubles last year, eventually finishing the season playing singles and qualifying for state for the third straight season. After placing 10th at state in singles as a freshman and 11th as a sophomore, Funk moved up to a ninth-place finish at state last year, helping the Wildcats capture their second Class 4A state championship in the past three seasons. She finished the season with a 12-5 singles mark and also went 16-2 in doubles play, including a 4-0 mark with returning senior Avery O’Bray and 10-2 record with Emily Sheetz. Funk could step into the No. 1 singles spot this year with the graduation of three-time state champion Ainzley Zulueta, but also could shift to doubles to pair with O’Bray or sophomore Sophia Wichman.
 

ABBIE GORMAN, FORT SCOTT
 
Gorman goes into her senior season as a three-time state placer, finishing top eight in singles each of the past two seasons after placing 10th in Class 4A doubles as a freshman. She’s posted a 53-12 record in singles play the past two seasons, finishing eighth at state as a sophomore and then moving up to a sixth-place finish last year. Gorman finished last season with a 30-7 record, falling to Independence’s Ava Morris in the fifth-place match after also losing to her Bulldog rival in the regional finals the previous week. Her other loss at state came in the quarterfinals to eventual runner-up Sofia Spies of Buhler. She’s one of two returning singles state qualifiers for the Tigers along with fellow senior Bryleigh Hymer.
 

ELLA GUERNSEY, CHANUTE
 
After coming up one win shy of earning a state medal in her varsity debut season as a sophomore in 2023, Guernsey moved from the No. 2 singles spot to No. 1 for the Blue Comets last year as top singles player Rylee Smith moved to doubles to team with Jacqueline Smoot. Guernsey handled the move up well, posting a 26-11 record and returning to the state tournament. She won tourney titles at the Chanute, Parsons and Pittsburg Invitationals in the regular season and took third at regionals. Guernsey made some noise at state, knocking off No. 6 seed and 2023 third-place finisher Ella Daniel of Bishop Miege in the second round. She couldn’t come up with another win at state but still posted a 12th-place finish to earn her first state medal.
 

SOPHIA HEGER, WINFIELD
 
After earning her first state bid as a sophomore, Heger climbed to a fourth-place singles finish in Class 4A a year ago and led the Vikings to a fourth-place tie with Wellington in the team race. The three-year varsity singles player posted a 24-8 record last fall. She finished second to Buhler’s Sofia Spies at regionals, then fell to Spies again in the 4A semifinals. Still, she provided a solid 1-2 punch for Winfield at singles with fellow returnee Zlata Mitina. Heger also posted a 2-2 state record in 2023 after finishing third at regionals.
 

 

QUINN LIEBL AND AVERY UNRUH, MCPHERSON
 
Liebl, a rising sophomore, and Unruh, a junior, aided McPherson’s second straight Class 4A runner-up finish last season by taking seventh at state in doubles. The duo gained some battle scars after winning their regional, dropping a hard-fought state quarterfinal to Circle’s Londyn Soto and Whitney Wilbur that featured two tiebreakers, and a consolation semifinal to Chapman’s Avery Baer and Meredith Kuntz. But they won their finale to post a 24-6 record, giving Liebl her first state medal and Unruh her second. Unruh made her state debut as a freshman in 2023, finishing 12^th with Alexandria Rodriguez.
 

 
BROOKLYN MATTIX, INDEPENDENCE
 
After dabbling with singles play for a brief period at the start of her freshman year, Mattix settled in as doubles partner for Callie Schlorholtz and over the past three years there have been few teams in the state that could match their success. The combo posted a 30-8 mark in 2022, placing fourth at the Class 4A state tournament and then followed that up with a 27-6 mark in 2023 that culminated with a third-place showing at state. Last year, the duo finally reached the top, capping a 31-4 season with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Hayden’s Emily Sheetz and Sophia Wichman in the 4A championship match. With the graduation of Schlorholtz, Mattix will be looking for a new partner to pair with to go after a second straight state title, though a move to singles isn’t out of the question either with Independence also graduating multi-time state placer Ava Morris. Potential doubles candidates could include returning state qualifiers in junior Sarah Veile (singles) and sophomore Morgan McLenon (doubles).
 

ZLATA MITINA, WINFIELD
 
Mitina, a junior, turned her focus to singles last season and gave the Vikings a formidable combination with teammate Sophia Heger. She finished third at regionals, then won three of five matches at state to post a seventh-place finish in Class 4A. Mitina’s victory over Augusta’s Elise Richardson in her finale capped a 27-7 season and complemented Heger’s fourth-place effort. Mitina gained her first state experience two years ago in doubles with Alessandra Le, going 1-2 after finishing sixth at regionals.
 

 
AVERY O’BRAY, HAYDEN
 
O’Bray played with two different doubles partners last season, starting the season with Grace Funk, the duo going 4-0 together, before returning to her pairing with classmate Izzy Glotzbach. She and Glotzbach qualified for state together in 2023, going 0-2, but last year not only made it back to state but worked their way to an 11th-place finish to help Hayden capture its second Class 4A team state championship in three years. O’Bray and Glotzbach finished with an 14-10 record and O’Bray finished the season 18-10 overall. She’ll likely remain as a doubles player this year but her partner is somewhat up in the air with Glotzbach opting to not return to the team this year to focus on golf, where she's a two-time state placer.
 

MCKENNA PAUL, MCPHERSON
 
Paul and her now-graduated doubles partner Kennedy Tully played their way into the Bullpups’ lineup late in the 2024 season and came away with plenty to show for it. The tandem posted a 17-7 record, finishing second to teammates Quinn Liebl and Avery Unruh at regionals. Then at state, Paul and Tully won their first two matches to reach the quarterfinals, where they fell to eventual champions Callie Schlorholtz and Brooklyn Mattix of Independence. Their four victories at state helped McPherson finish second and gave Paul some valuable experience as she enters her junior season.
 

LOGAN ROBINSON, WELLINGTON
 
Robinson, a senior, has finished eighth in Class 4A doubles each of the last two years, first with Kadynce Aufdengarten and last fall with Addi Thomson, who made her state debut as a freshman. With another senior, Cruz Cornejo, also returning, Crusaders coach Brian Aufdengarten enters the season sorting through his doubles options. Robinson comes in with 62 career victories after posting a 21-10 record with Thomson. Both of her state-medal finishes came on the heels of runner-up showings at regionals. Robinson helped the Crusaders tie for fourth in 4A last fall.
 

 
MARYN SANDBO, MCPHERSON
 
Sandbo, a senior, made an impressive climb from 10^th place in Class 4A singles two years ago to third last fall. Both helped McPherson to runner-up finishes in the team competition. Sandbo, the McPherson regional champion, posted a 27-9 record in 2024, defeating Augusta’s Elise Richardson and Independence’s Ava Morris to reach the state semifinals. After a straight-set loss to eventual champion Ainzley Zulueta of Hayden, Sandbo capped her run with a victory over Winfield’s Sophia Heger. Sandbo is a three-time state qualifier in singles, posting a 1-2 mark in her 2022 debut to cap a 24-8 season.
 

 
JACQUELINE SMOOT, CHANUTE
 
Smoot spent the past two seasons playing doubles with Rylee Smith and the duo was formidable, posting a 46-22 record over those two seasons. Last year, they finished with a 29-9 mark and captured titles at the Labette County, Chanute and Pittsburg Invitationals. After a runner-up Class 4A regional finish to eventual state champions Brooklyn Mattix and Callie Schlorholtz, Smoot and Smith were upset in their first match at the state tournament by Southeast Kansas League rivals Manaye Ryan-Harris and Kadence Ball of Parsons in a 6-3, 5-7, 10-8 marathon, but bounced back to win four straight matches on the backside to reach the consolation finals where they fell 8-4 to Chapman’s Avery Baer and Meredith Kuntz, finishing sixth. With Smith graduating, Smoot will be looking for a new partner this year and could perhaps pair with one of Chanute’s two returning singles state qualifiers, senior Ella Guernsey or junior Leah Burnett.
 

 
SOFIA SPIES, BUHLER
 
Only the dominance of now-graduated, three-time state champion Ainzley Zulueta of Hayden could overshadow Spies in her debut season last fall. Now a sophomore, Spies is coming off a 33-4 campaign that ended with a 6-0, 6-0 loss to Zulueta in the Class 4A singles final. Spies, the younger sister of Buhler’s three-time 4A boys singles Davian Spies, won six tournaments last season, including Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail III-IV and regional titles. Spies dropped just six games in her run to the Winfield regional title and six games in her three state victories prior to the final against Zulueta.
 

 
MARY THOMPSON, BISHOP MIEGE
 
Thompson has played both singles and doubles throughout her career for Miege, but has settled in as one of the Stags’ top doubles players the past two seasons and will be a key leader for the team as a senior this season. She spent most of last year playing with now-departed Shea Coughlan and they won their first match at state before falling 6-2, 7-6 (6) to eventual fourth-place finishers Londyn Soto and Whitney Wilbur of Circle in the second round. Tough losses were a theme at state as after winning two matches to clinch a state medal, Thompson and Coughlan fell 8-6 in the consolation quarterfinals and 9-7 in their next match, eventually finishing 12th and with a 19-18 mark. Thompson will return to doubles this year, but her partner is up in the air with Miege graduating not only Coughlan but its other state-qualifying doubles team.
 
 

ADDI THOMSON, WELLINGTON
 
Thomson, a sophomore, earned a state medal in her Class 4A tournament debut last season, finishing eighth in doubles with now-senior Logan Robinson. The duo posted a 21-10 record with a regional runner-up finish to teammates Kadynce Aufdengarten and Cruz Cornejo. Also 5-2 in singles last season, Thomson will likely keep her focus on doubles this fall, although coach Brian Aufdengarten could explore different partner options for his returning Crusader state qualifiers.
 

 
SOPHIA WICHMAN, HAYDEN
 
Wichman began her freshman season last year playing in Hayden’s No. 2 singles spot and went 4-2. But midway through the season, she settled in as the doubles partner for senior Emily Sheetz, who had played with multiple partners after losing previous partner Lauren Sandstrom to graduation after the duo captured two straight Class 4A state titles. Sheetz and Wichman nearly made it three straight doubles titles for Hayden as they prospered together and went 15-3. After finishing runner-up at the Centennial League and Topeka City Championships, they captured a 4A regional title and then advanced to the 4A doubles championship match before falling to Independence’s Callie Schlorholtz and Brooklyn Mattix 6-1, 6-2. With Sheetz having graduated, Wichman could move back to singles this year to help fill the void left by three-time state champion Ainzley Zulueta, or welcome a new partner to go after a doubles state title.
 

 
WHITNEY WILBUR, CIRCLE
 
Wilbur enters her senior season without Londyn Soto, her now-graduated doubles partner from a year ago. The Thunderbird duo followed up a third-place finish at the Winfield regional with a fourth-place effort in Class 4A doubles, ending the season with a 22-10 record. Wilbur and Soto won one of the best Day 1 matches in last year’s tournament, rallying past regional champions Quinn Liebl and Avery Unruh of McPherson 6-7 (5), 7-6 (3), 6-2 in the quarterfinals. Wilbur played doubles with classmate Beth Turner two years ago, posting a 13-11 record.
 
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.