After the first day of competition, the biggest question wasn’t if Blue Valley West would win its fourth straight state championship, but by how much.
By the end of Saturday afternoon at Riverside Tennis Complex in Wichita, the Jaguars had delivered their answer in emphatic fashion.
Blue Valley West capped off another dominant showing at the Class 6A boys state tennis tournament, becoming the first boys program in classification history to capture four consecutive state championships. With both singles players and doubles teams reaching the semifinals after Friday’s opening day, the Jaguars had effectively all but wrapped up the title before the tournament’s final matches even began.
Still, Blue Valley West wasn’t content to simply secure the team trophy. The Jaguars closed out the weekend with a state doubles championship, a singles runner-up finish, a third-place medal in doubles and a third-place finish in singles to punctuate one of the most complete performances in recent team history — a history that now has six state championships for the Jaguars.
“We really enjoy the challenge of the grind every day,” Blue Valley West head coach Alec Bergeron said. “We really enjoy the process of getting better every day and just letting the results speak for themselves. Learning to play the sport the right way and learning to improve, the wins come with that. It is never old, but it is nice to continue that legacy on and keep it rolling.”
Blue Valley West junior Ganesh Srikanth celebrates a big point during the Jaguars' state doubles championship match Saturday in Wichita.
Leading the way was the Jaguars’ No. 1 doubles team of juniors Ganesh Srikanth and Ishaan Musti, who captured their first state championship together after rallying past Shawnee Mission East’s Aidan Lashley and Teddy Long in the finals, 5-7, 7-6 (2), 6-2.
After dropping the opening set and facing elimination in a tightly contested second set, Srikanth and Musti found another gear in the tiebreaker and never looked back. Momentum swung decisively in Blue Valley West’s favor as the Jaguars pair controlled the final set to finish the year with a 20-1 record.
“There were a lot of nerves in that championship match and a lot of playing tight,” Srikanth said. “Once we started playing our shots and being aggressive and sticking to our fundamentals, I think it went really well. Once we got to that final set, we just clamped down, got a good lead and finished strong.”
The title capped a memorable journey for the junior duo, both of whom missed out on state success earlier in their high school careers.
“It means a lot to me,” Srikanth said. “For my freshman year not making state, I didn’t play last year, then playing this year and winning a state title with Ishaan just means a lot. Then to win a team title on top of it just feels amazing.”
Blue Valley West junior Ishaan Musti captured the doubles title with teammate Ganesh Srikanth on Saturday at the Class 6A state tournament in Wichita.
Musti echoed those sentiments.
“I have had pretty much the same road as Ganesh,” Musti said. “Didn’t make it to state my freshman year, last year I made it but my partner and I had a pretty rough go of it. This year, to win a state championship with a guy that I have played a lot of doubles with really means a lot.”
Their chemistry showed throughout the season. The longtime USTA partners leaned on years of familiarity when the pressure mounted most.
“When we were younger, Ganesh and I would play against each other a lot in the USTA matches,” Musti said. “We played a lot of doubles together this year and our freshman year as well. Since then I feel we have built up a lot of team chemistry and we have gotten pretty good as a team.”
Bergeron said the pairing eventually became impossible to overlook.
“Ganesh and Ishaan play a lot in the offseason together and they are very good friends,” Bergeron said. “We didn’t know what our doubles teams were going to look like this year. We were looking at a bunch of different things throughout the year and those two really stepped up and took that No. 1 spot. They dominated all year and they earned it.”
Blue Valley West senior Hayden Gansen returns a volley at the net Saturday as he and teammate Marcus Sha took third in doubles.
The Jaguars’ depth also shined through with No. 2 doubles team Hayden Gansen and Marcus Sha making an impressive state debut. After falling to teammates Srikanth and Musti in the semifinals, 6-0, 6-3, Gansen and Sha rallied for third place with a 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 victory over Blue Valley Northwest’s Srinivasa Vel and Andy Oberoi.
“Every day in practice we would play a set against them and they would push us a lot,” Musti said of Gansen and Sha. “They really helped us a lot and allowed us to work on our game.”
Blue Valley West’s singles lineup also delivered.
Blue Valley West senior Jonah Stolte pumps his fist after a big point during Saturday's state singles championship. Stolte ended his Jaguar career with three state runner-up finishes.
Senior Jonah Stolte capped a decorated career with another runner-up finish after pushing undefeated Free State standout Micah Ward in the championship match before falling 7-6 (4), 6-1. Ward finished the season 27-0, but Stolte gave him his toughest challenge of the year.
“Micah and I have probably been playing since we were 11 or 12 years old,” Stolte said. “I know him very well and hit with him during the offseason. He is a really great player. In that first set, both of us had chances to win it and it was just a fight.”
Bergeron believed Stolte’s effort showed exactly who he was.
“Jonah gave him everything that he could,” Bergeron said. “He had some really good shots in that tiebreaker. He had a couple really good drop shots and Micah responded twice. That was pretty demoralizing and Jonah knew it too. He gave Micah his best and that was the closest Micah had been pushed all year.”
Stolte, meanwhile, took pride in the bigger picture.
“It is super cool for me, and Aarya both, to be the first in school history to be a part of four team state championships,” Stolte said. “Even though I didn’t get the individual title, I am glad that I can at least leave that mark as part of my career.”
Blue Valley West senior Aarya Anjankar returns a serve during a state touranment match Saturday. Anjankar took third to help the Jaguars to a fourth state title.
Fellow senior Aarya Anjankar also played a pivotal role. After grinding through a grueling 3 1/2-hour quarterfinal victory over Blue Valley Northwest’s Luca Ospino, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4, Anjankar reached the semifinals before falling to Stolte, 6-3, 6-2. He rebounded to claim third place with a 6-0, 6-4 victory over Free State’s Ishaan Rao.
“Day one went phenomenal,” Bergeron said. “Aarya, our No. 2 singles guy, just played an absolute marathon match to just reach the semifinals. It started like at 3:30 and didn’t end till 7:15. It was brutal, but he fought the entire time. He never doubted himself, was very coachable and really turned it around for himself like I knew he would.”
For Bergeron, Anjankar’s finish carried extra meaning after spending three years in doubles, including winning a state doubles title last season.
“Aarya had waited his time for so long,” Bergeron said. “This year was just his time and he earned every bit of it. I couldn’t be more proud of him.”
Blue Valley West won its fourth straight state championship Saturday at the Riverside Tennis Complex in Wichita.
Saturday’s title also marked the end of an era. Bergeron, who coached the Jaguars through all four championship runs, is stepping away after guiding one of Kansas’ premier programs.
“The tennis community around here has been so amazing,” Bergeron said. “I couldn’t have asked for a better ending and just very thankful of everyone’s support along the way.”
For Stolte, Bergeron’s impact won’t soon be forgotten.
“He has played a big part in all of this for sure,” Stolte said. “He is a phenomenal coach. There is no coach who is out there that works as hard as him and there is no coach who takes care of his team more than he does. Glad I got to be with him all four years.”
CLASS 6A STATE TENNIS TOURNAMENT
DOUBLES
Championship – Ganesh Srikanth/Ishaan Mustin, Blue Valley West, def. Aidan Lashley/Teddy Long, Shawnee Mission East, 5-7, 7-6 (2), 6-2; Third Place — Hayden Gansen/Marcus Sha, Blue Valley West, def. Srinivasa Vel/Andy Oberoi, 4-6, 7-5, 6-1; Fifth Place — Ryder Heaven/Carson Mower, Shawnee Mission South, def. Jace Hutchens/Jack Thomas, Mill Valley, 8-1; Seventh Place — Jack Bauch/Koh Brewer, Lawrence, def. Aidan Messerly/Bryan Branstrom, Olathe Northwest, 8-6; Ninth Place — Ben Tryhus/Kieffer O’Connor, Washburn Rural, def. Dylan Willingham/Cale Duetscher, Washburn Rural, 8-5; 11th Place — Alex Benage/Devin Francis, Maize, def. Andrew McCall/Drew Harrison, Free State, 9-8 (1)
TEAM SCORES
Blue Valley West 54, Free State 32, Shawnee Mission East 31, Blue Valley Northwest 26, Mill Valley 16, Washburn Rural 11, Shawnee Mission South 10, Olathe Northwest 9, Lawrence 8, Olathe South 8, Maize 6, Manhattan 5, Garden City 4, Derby 2, Shawnee Mission North 2, Topeka High 2
Shawnee Mission East's Aidan Lashley (left) and Teddy Long finished as the state runner-up in doubles.