Missouri Military Academy tennis wants strong follow-up to state trophy

Missouri Military Academy tennis made history last year and thinks it will make even more this season.

MMA is coming off its first state Final Four season – took fourth place – since 1992 after qualifying five of six varsity players for the Class 1 individual state tournament, which is a school record. All six varsity Colonels finished first or second at districts to win a district title.

Head coach Brad Smith said MMA wants to win its third straight district title this year and earn an even higher finish at the state meet.

Senior Gorka Yarte, district and sectional champion and state qualifier, and juniors Samuel Way and Nathan Dempsey, who each qualified for state double competition after being sectional winners and a district champion and runner-up, all return. Three varsity players from last year were lost, but Smith thinks senior Ernesto De La Maza, junior Francisco De La Maza and sophomore Patricio Bravo are up to the task.

“Our new cadets on varsity are also ones to be watched,” Smith said. “Cadets Bravo, Francisco De La Maza, and Ernesto De La Maza are strong replacements to the cadets we lost from last year, pushing our returning varsity players to their limits in practice. They are eager to begin varsity competition to show what they are capable of.”

The Colonels also have 11 junior varsity players for a total of 17 on the team.

Mexico boys tennis thinking local, then big

The Mexico boys want several tennis players at the state meet, obviously, but think conquering the local competition is a good start.

Among the Bulldogs’ list of goals this season are winning the North Central Missouri Conference and districts after fighting Hannibal and Kirksville for conference the last few years and finishing second at districts last season.

Two that will lead those efforts are reigning all-conference and all-district players senior Declan Gleeson and junior Brendan McKeown. The pair were each one match away from qualifying for sectionals, head coach Tony Senor said.

Senor said the team should have 16 players, including three seniors, three juniors, seven sophomores and three freshmen.

Other returners Senor said to keep an eye on are seniors Zeven Ruiz and Jackson Lamb, and sophomores Boston Davolt and Camden Williams. Newcomers include sophomores Quaid Grubb and Brixton Goerne.