Akron-area high school girls tennis: 12 players to watch in 2024

Posted by Admin September 6, 2024 Tennis

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The 2024 high school girls tennis regular season is in progress and players are rounding into form with the postseason set to begin in late September and early October.

Highland senior Ally Haynes and Archbishop Hoban senior Haley Slay are two of the top players in the Greater Akron area after competing in the Division I and Division II state tournaments, respectively, in singles last season.

There will be a new Division I state tournament singles champion this season with the graduation of last year’s champ, North Canton Hoover’s Tess Bucher (41-0 as a senior and 149-9 in career).

The state tournaments are scheduled for Oct. 17, 18 and 19 at the College of Wooster.

Highland is one of the hottest teams in the area as it entered Wednesday with a 9-1 record in duals and with first-place finishes in the Highland Invitational and the Medina Doubles Tournament. The Hornets won all four doubles courts, with Haynes and junior Claire Schlak at first, freshman Lily Hantz and senior Mackenzie Pawlak at second, senior Ella Tople and senior Hailey Pennington at third and senior Wren Marquis and junior Sarah Kelly at fourth.

Walsh Jesuit finished second to Highland at the Medina Doubles Tournament.

Here is a breakdown of the top girls tennis players this season in Greater Akron, with win-loss records as of Wednesday morning:

Ally Haynes, Highland

Haynes, a senior, compiled a 24-10 singles record last year and was a Division I state singles tournament participant. She was a sectional runner-up and finished sixth in the district tournament. She is 9-4 in first singles this season and went 3-0 with Highland junior Claire Schlak to win the Medina Doubles Tournament title at first doubles. Haynes has a 70-20 career record.

Haley Slay, Archbishop Hoban

Slay, a senior, compiled a 20-3 singles record last year and was a quarterfinalist in the Division II state singles tournament at Wooster. Slay was a sectional champion and finished third in the district tournament.

Mallory Hannan, Hudson

Hannah, a senior, was a Division I district singles tournament participant last year and posted a 26-5 record. She is 11-1 this season, playing second singles for the Explorers.

Emma Liu, Hudson

Liu, a freshman, is making an immediate impact at first singles for the Explorers and has an 11-1 record.

Mackenzie Pawlak, Highland

Pawlak, a senior, was a Divison I district doubles tournament participant last year with classmate Wren Marquis. Pawlak is 16-0 this season in doubles matches, including 13-0 in first doubles. She went 3-0 with Highland freshman Lily Hantz to win the Medina Doubles Tournament title at second doubles.

Claire Schlak, Highland

Schlak, a junior, is 11-1 at second singles this season and went 3-0 with Highland senior Ally Haynes to win the Medina Doubles Tournament title at first doubles.

Lily Hantz, Highland

Hantz, a freshman, is 15-1 overall this season, including 13-0 in doubles and 2-1 in singles. She and senior Mackenzie Pawlak are 10-0 together at first doubles and the duo went 3-0 to win the Medina Doubles Tournament title at second doubles.

Karlie Nicolae, Archbishop Hoban

Nicolae, a junior, was a Divison II district singles tournament participant last year.

Katarina Jovanovic, Norton

Jovanovic, a senior, was a Divison II district singles tournament participant last year and compiled a 27-4 record. She has a 9-0 mark in singles matches this year,.

Amy Beebe, CVCA

Beebe, a senior, was a Division II district singles tournament participant last year and finished with a record of 20-8.

Kyla Moore, CVCA

Moore, a senior, was a Division II district double tournament participant last year with teammate Grace Saffles. Moore finished 15-7 in singles matches and 3-3 in doubles a year ago. She is 4-2 in singles matches this season and 1-0 in doubles.

Grace Saffles, CVCA

Saffles, a sophomore, was a Division II district double tournament participant with teammate Kyla Moore last season. Saffles finished last year with a 22-6 record in doubles matches and is 8-1 this year in doubles with senior Skylar Wood.

Michael Beaven can be reached by email at mbeaven@thebeaconjournal.com and is on Twitter at @MBeavenABJ.