Litchfield residents accounted for three of seven winner’s bracket championships at the 39th annual Watercade tennis tournament July 7-9.
The No. 3 singles player on the Litchfield High School team in 2016, Laney Huhner, was No. 1 in the Watercade women’s singles. Huhner knocked off foes from the Wright County Conference Emily Moe of Annandale (6-2, 6-2) and Madison Roepke of Hutchinson (6-3, 6-2).
Huhner defeated White Bear Lake’s Sammie Waldvogel 6-2, 6-4 in the championship. Waldvogel was a 2016 MSHSL Class AA singles state tournament participant and beat Litchfield’s Vaida Behnke 6-1, 7-5 in the semifinals.
Behnke also competed in the womens doubles tournament, advancing to the championship with high school No. 1 doubles partner, Avery Stilwell.
They faced a formidable duo of Shanna Kinny, LHS’ No. 2 single, and Elise Bierbaum, Willmar High School’s No. 1 single. Kinny and Bierbaum won 6-2, 6-3 after defeating the Litchfield duo of Kennedy Sommerfeld and Livia Behnke in the semifinals.
Sommerfeld and Behnke defeated the Litchfield Prahl pair of Britney and Karlee 6-3, 6-1 in the consolation championship.
The third Litchfield victory was courtesy of Jack Litzau and John Paulsen.
Litzau and Paulsen beat another all-Litchfield team of John Carlson and Mike Miller 7-5, 6-1 to reach the finals, where they beat Wyatt Kadelbach of Big Lake and Tyler Rousslang of Monticello 6-3, 6-1.
Carlson and Miller bounced back to topple Tom Klauer of Woodbury and Derek Penk of Litchfield 6-1, 7-5 in the consolation finals.
For full brackets and results, visit www.watercadetennis.org.
Copyright 2017 Litchfield Independent Review/Crow River Media/Media News Group.