Best of luck to the Saints’ girls tennis team as they are set to compete in the Minnesota State Girls Tennis Tournament starting Tuesday morning. The Saints take on #1-seed Mahtomedi at 10 a.m. on Tuesday (Oct. 21) in the opening round of the state team tourney at Lifetime South in Bloomington. For complete state tourney details please click HERE!
The Saints’ state sendoff took place at the end of the school day on Monday. The Saints visited South Elementary, North Elementary, and Saint Peter Middle School, and then wrapped up the day with a pepfest in the SPHS gym. Photos from the sendoff will be shared on the SPPS Facebook page on Tuesday morning.
The MN State Class AA Individual Tourney (singles & doubles) begins Thursday morning in Bloomington. More details will be shared later this week on that event.
Saints’ 1997 state tennis team earned third-place finish
This is just the second time in school history that the Saints’ girls tennis team has qualified for state, and hopes are high this year’s squad will bring back some hardware like the 1997 team did. That year the Saints went 2-1 at state on their way to a third-place finish. (See photos below for a trophy photo and some photos of the St. Peter Herald's coverage from that memorable state trip for the 1997 Saints' state squad!)
Members of that 1997 state tourney team included Heidi Mogenson, Greta Weiss, Jessi Strey, Amy Heilman, Abby Mogenson, Tina Liljengren, Stephanie Witty, Sarah Riedel, Heather Friedrich, Katie Lucas, and Katie Hausenbauer.
The 1997 St. Peter girls tennis team, led by head coach Peter Liljengren and assistant coach Lori Hanson, rolled through the Section 2A team tourney beating Belle Plaine 7-0 in the opening round and Le Sueur-Henderson/Cleveland 6-1 in the semifinals. To earn their state trip, the team edged then-South Central Conference rival Blue Earth Area 4-3 in a hard-fought match.
At the state meet, the Saints opened with a convincing 7-0 win over Osakis before falling 6-1 to eventual state champion Rochester Lourdes in the semifinals. St. Peter bounced back in dramatic fashion with a 5-2 win over Foley to claim the third-place state team trophy and bronze medals!
Team members for the 1998 state third-place Saints included the following:
Singles
Heidi Mogenson (also qualified in singles individually)
Greta Weiss
Jessi Strey
Amy Heilman (Katie Hausenbauer)
Doubles
Abby Mogenson & Tina Liljengren
Stephanie Witty & Sarah Riedel
Heather Friedrich & Katie Lucas
Head Coach - Peter Liljengren
Assistant Coach - Lori Hanson
