Bemidji Girls’ Tennis Continues Streak into Section Semis

Bemidji girls’ tennis has made it through the first weekend of the Section 8AA tournament, remaining a perfect 24-0 heading into the team semifinal matches, which begin on Friday.

The Lumberjacks were in a similar situation before in 2012 but fell short of their goal of reaching the state tournament. Never has a bar been so high for the Jacks, but they’re staying grounded and ready to do whatever it takes to keep their dream season alive.

“It’s really cool to tell people that we had an undefeated season, but going into sections, I think it’s important that our team kind of brushes that thought aside and we go in as though we’re 0-0,” said senior captain Elena Peterson. “Everyone’s built up so much confidence and really stepped into new roles on the court, and you can just tell that everyone’s become much more comfortable with each other. And we have so many versatile players, too, that are able to step into new spots.”

“I think it really helps us improve not only as a team, like getting those wins, but just like individually as well,” added senior captain Sam Wood. “Being able to test your strengths at different courts. When it comes to the other girls moving around, they’re doing the exact same thing. And it’s honestly probably what built our team up the most and why we’re undefeated today. It just really shows that you’re putting the team first and not yourself. No matter where you’re put, you play good. That’s good.”

In the Section 8AA semifinals, North 1-seed Bemidji will take on St. Cloud in match one, and Brainerd will be taking on Becker in match two. Those two winners of each match will play Friday at 4 p.m.

In individual doubles, Bemidji has two teams (Elena Peterson/Megan Berg and Sam Wood/Lilly Caron) and Brainerd has one (Ericah Folden/Kamryn Kraemer). In the individual singles, Bemidji’s Bailey Rupp is the lone player from the area.