The girls tennis team finished off the year strong by placing fourth in the IHSA 1A state championship Oct. 24-26 at Hersey High School in Arlington Heights. A singles player and a doubles team each placed second.
The team was state champion in 2019, 2021 and 2023, placing in the top 10 each of the past eight seasons, solidifying U-High as one of the best 1A teams in Illinois.
The tournament started with 152 teams with at least one qualifier. U-High qualified five individuals, two doubles teams and one singles team. From this, the doubles team of sophomores Isabelel Ji and Sophia Holt and singles player senior Paola Almeda each made it to the championship round and placed second.
Two weeks earlier at the ISL championship, U-High placed third as a team. Paola placed first in singles, as did doubles partners Isabel and Sophia.
Isabelle reflected on the experience of playing at state, trying to balance the roaring crowds with the tough sets that she was playing.
“At the end there are a lot of big crowds there, and people are screaming their heads off,” Isabelle said. “It really helps to just focus on one thing at a time and try to drown everything out as fast as you can.”
Paola said she is really happy with the team and how close they have gotten over the season.
Paola said, “This team is the closest that it’s been at least for the years that I’ve been on the tennis team.”
