<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0RhhWz_0wEvEM8200" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0RhhWz_0wEvEM8200" width="1416" height="797" ></figure>ANDOVER – When match point No. 11 finally landed Molly Gaddis her first Class 5A state singles championship Saturday afternoon, the Andover senior calmly approached the net, in large part out of respect to her opponent, Blue Valley Southwest’s Jensen Gibbs.Gibbs’ double fault on the deciding point contrasted with the numerous points she had fought to win with her back against the wall, including three straight in the penultimate game that helped her stay in the match with a service break.“I just didn’t want to be rude,” Gaddis said after her 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 victory over her fellow senior at the Andover District Tennis Complex. “It was a little disappointing that I really couldn’t celebrate, but I’m still happy I won.”While Gaddis kept her cool, four of her Trojan teammates on an adjacent court needed a moment. Seniors Nadia Kaewsai and Biz Gaddis – Molly’s twin sister – and underclassmen Emma Jittawait and Ada Tantemsomboon stopped their state doubles championship duel to cheer Gaddis’ accomplishment.A little later, Kaewsai and Biz Gaddis celebrated a 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory over their younger teammates, who quickly shelved their disappointment for a group hugfest as Andover won its fourth consecutive 5A team title.Junior Mia Jaramillo’s third-place singles finish was the final piece of a dominant tournament performance by the Trojans. Andover finished with 58 points, well ahead of runner-up Kapaun Mt. Carmel’s 22 and third-place Seaman’s 20.Andover graduated 2023 state doubles champions Brooke Walker and Anna Jittawait, who went 30-0 during the Trojans’ title run last year. But the returnees and Tantemsomboon, – a sophomore newcomer who battled health issues last fall – didn’t miss a beat this season, winning team titles at all the meets in which they competed.“All my teams were pretty tight, but this team just seemed like a family,” Andover coach Stephen Alexander said. “Since the end of last season, I would hear from people that I know that they were constantly hitting together. They really started this state title run last November.”Molly Gaddis collected her fourth team title in addition to her first singles crown. Like Gibbs, she medaled in 5A singles in each of three previous state appearances. Both were determined to go out a winner, displaying their strengths as they split the first two sets.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=3P7wJZ_0wEvEM8200" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=3P7wJZ_0wEvEM8200" width="667" height="450" ><figcaption>Blue Valley Southwest senior Jensen Gibbs posted a career-best second-place finish in Class 5A singles.</figcaption></figure>The top-seeded Gaddis separated by breaking Gibbs to open the third set and maintained the advantage the rest of the way. She set the stage for victory by volleying into a vacated spot for another service break that put her up 5-2.“I was like, ‘Yeah, right here. Right here,’” Gaddis said.But Gibbs, who collected two sixth-place medals and a fifth at state in her first three high school seasons, showed her grit. She erased a love-40 deficit to pull within 5-3, then fought off seven more match points in the final game before her last serve settled into the net.“I honestly feel really proud of myself,” said Gibbs, who topped Jaramillo in the semifinals and finished 31-3. “I played three really tough people this tournament. (Bishop Carroll’s) Logan (Jagolinzer) is a tough player, Mia is a tough player and Molly is obviously a tough player.”Gaddis dominated throughout the season with a powerful baseline game. Her ability to rifle forehands just above the top of the net was uncanny. She yielded just six games in her first three state matches, including a 6-3, 6-0 victory over Seaman sophomore and Bonner Springs regional champion Emma Sweeney in the semifinals.Championship point, however, required patience.“With all the players I’ve played prior to her, when it was match point they just kind of gave it to me,” said Gaddis, who finished 31-1 and notched her 105th career singles victory. “I actually had to work for the point with her and that obviously made it more difficult.”Gaddis defeated Gibbs for the second time in a state tournament. As freshmen, the Trojan outlasted Gibbs in a three-set quarterfinal on her way to a fourth-place finish. Gaddis dropped to 11th at state as a sophomore, but built momentum for her final season with a career-best third a year ago.“She’s put so much work and time into developing her game,” Alexander said. “The difference between her now and when she was a freshman is significant. This year the mental side of her game is so much stronger.“Freshman year she was strong and could hit the ball a ton, but that was all she did. Now she has more to her game and she’s developed a lot more weapons than just her power. She’s really worked hard to get to this point and it’s showed, and I couldn’t be happier.”BIZ GADDIS, KAEWSAI EARN SENIOR DAY VICTORYEven with his state doubles champions from last year graduated, Alexander entered the fall with solid – and even proven – options moving forward.He decided to split the team of Biz Gaddis and Emma Jittawait, who finished third in 5A in 2023. Gaddis paired with fellow senior Kaewsai, while Jittawait, a junior, and Tantemsomboon launched a new partnership.After falling to their younger teammates once in the regular season and again at the Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail Division II tournament, Gaddis and Kaewsai evened the season series with wins at last week’s Maize South regional and again on Saturday.“I told them before the first practice that because they were two seniors, when this day came I figured they would have a little bit more hunger in them because this was their last chance to do something with high school tennis,” Alexander said.Both Andover doubles teams made the season’s final day memorable. Jittawait and Tantemsomboom, the No. 2 seeds, survived the match of the tournament in Saturday’s semifinals. The Trojans overcame a 2-5 deficit in the third set to rally past Salina Central seniors Addi and Mallory Renfro 6-4, 0-6, 7-6 (6).After the nearly 3-hour marathon match, Jittawait and Tantemsomboon seized momentum midway through the opening set of the championship and took it 6-3.The deficit put Kaewsai and Biz Gaddis in regroup mode.“There was a point where I was like, ‘This is my last time playing a high school match. If I’m going to go out, I’m going to go out playing the way I want to play,’” Kaewsai said. “I literally told Biz, ‘We’re going to sell our souls on the court. We’re going to put everything out there.’“If we lost, it was going to be good on them, but we’re not going to have any regrets on the court.”The Andover seniors turned the tables in the second set – even with the pause to applaud Molly Gaddis after her title-clinching victory. They dropped just three games in the final two sets and celebrated with Kaewsai jumping into Gaddis’ arms. Within seconds, Jittawait and Tantemsomboon headed to the winners’ side of the net to join the party.“When Molly first won, I started crying on the court,” Biz Gaddis said. “Honestly, I just felt really happy. And then when we won our match, it was just that reality that me and my sister both won state. It was pretty special.”Kaewsai and Biz Gaddis capped their careers with a 32-4 record, while Jittawait and Tantemsomboon finished 33-4.“I just saw this match before the season kind of happening this way,” Alexander said. “They are so supportive of each other, it’s kind of fun to watch. You saw that at the end of the doubles final. The losers were happy for the winners, which is really kind of rare.”CLASS 5A CHAMPIONSHIPSAt Andover District Tennis ComplexTEAM SCORESAndover 58, Kapaun Mt. Carmel 22, Seaman 20, Salina Central 20, Bishop Carroll 19, Maize South 19, Blue Valley Southwest 17, Emporia 8, Valley Center 8, Andover Central 7, St. James Academy 7, Newton 6, Spring Hill 6, St. Thomas Aquinas 3, KC Piper 2, Salina South 2, Basehor-Linwood 1, De Soto 1, Hutchinson 1.SINGLESChampionship – M. Gaddis, Andover, def. Gibbs, Blue Valley Southwest, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3. Third place – Jaramillo, Andover, def. Sweeney, Seaman, 4-6, 6-2, 6-2. Fifth place – Harrison, Maize South, def. Jagolinzer, Bishop Carroll, 8-1. Seventh place – Munhall, Valley Center, def. Cl. Hocker, Kapaun Mt. Carmel, 8-1. Ninth place – Keough, Emporia, def. Gorman, Seaman, 8-2. 11th place – Judkins, Kapaun Mt. Carmel, def. Hartweger, Blue Valley Southwest, by default.DOUBLESChampionship – E. Gaddis/Kaewsai, Andover def. Jittawait/Tantemsomboon, Andover, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2. Third place – A. Renfro/M. Renfro, Salina Central, def. Ca. Hocker/Ch. Hocker, Kapaun Mt. Carmel, 6-2, 6-2. Fifth place – Steven/Dugan, Bishop Carroll, def. Todd/Schumaker, Maize South, 8-5. Seventh place – Foth/C. Renfro, Salina Central, def. Geoffroy/Schaefer, Andover Central, 8-4. Ninth place – Hershberger/Franz, Newton, def. A. Neuer/D. Neuer, St. James Academy, 8-3. 11th place – Anderson/Pierson, Spring Hill, def. Henry/Chinn, Seaman, 9-8 (3).</div></body>

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Four-gone conclusion: Andover sweeps singles, doubles titles to extend 5A run

ANDOVER – When match point No. 11 finally landed Molly Gaddis her first Class 5A state singles championship Saturday afternoon, the Andover senior calmly approached the net, in large part out of respect to her opponent, Blue Valley Southwest’s Jensen Gibbs. Gibbs’ double fault on the deciding point...