In a historic triumph, the Valley City Hi-Liners battled through three consecutive 3-2 matches to secure their second-ever state tennis championship, their first since 1971.
The day would begin against the 4th seed out of the west, the Bismarck Century Patriots. As would become a theme throughout the tournament, the Hi-Liners would have to rally in dramatic fashion after falling behind.
Valley City uncharacteristically only managed a split in doubles play, with the pairing of Abby Martineck and Ella Olson falling in three sets, leaving the door open for the Patriots. Century would waste no time capitalizing on the opening as EDC Tournament hero Skye Neilson fell to Kyla Jorgenson in three sets (5-7, 6-3, 6-1) in singles play to put Valley City on the brink of elimination.
Valley City’s tournament life now fell to Georgia Zaun and Kailee Neilson as the usual doubles pairing had to pull out the comeback. The comeback would start with Zaun, who narrowly defeated Ava Dunlop in a three-set thriller (6-4, 3-6, 6-4) to set the stage for her partner to complete the comeback.
K. Neilson would be matched up with Century’s top singles player, Erika Lee, with a spot in the state semi-finals on the line. Neilson would take control of the match early, keeping Lee from establishing much of a foothold. Her attacking play allowed her to finish off the match in two sets (6-4, 6-3).
With their spot in the semi-finals secured, the Hi-Liners would shift the focus to the #2 seed of the West, the Bismarck Legacy Sabers, who dispatched Fargo Davies 3-2.
For the fourth match in a row, Valley City strategically maintained the same lineup, splitting defending doubles champions Abby Martineck and Breck Sufficool to play with Ella Olson and Alyssa Thomsen, respectively.
According to Valley City Head Coach Matt Neilson, this lineup “empowers Ella and Alyssa to make decisions and to play at their highest level.” The decision proved fruitful, as the Hi-Liners swept doubles play, needing only one more win to advance to the finals.
The Sabers would not go quietly into the night, as they rallied to take a pair of wins in singles, with Aleah McPherson and Halle Seversen picking up a pair of straight sets wins over Kailee Neilson and Georgia Zaun. These two wins would force a deciding 5th match that paired Skye Neilson against Legacy’s Cambrya Kraft, with both players having a win over the other in the regular season.
After a sluggish start to her state tournament, S. Neilson wasted no time in regaining the momentum she had built up in the EDC Tournament, rolling to a commanding straight-sets win (6-2, 6-1) to punch Valley City’s ticket to the state championship match.
Awaiting the Hi-Liners would be last year’s state champions, Minot, who had yet to taste defeat in nearly two years.
With the state tournament on the line, coach Neilson sent out his top two doubles teams, Martineck & Sufficool and Zaun & K. Neilson, to try and sweep doubles play. The strategy, however, would leave Alyssa Thomsen and Ella Olson against two of the best singles players for Minot Kyllie Fettig and Sienna Ronning, who both sported stellar singles records.
After Thomsen and Olson fell in singles play, the moment of truth came for coach Neilson’s strategy, with his doubles teams needing to win to keep the match alive. Valley City’s two state qualifiers would not let their coach down, as both pairs marched to impressive straight-set wins to set the table for a dramatic championship finish.
With both teams playing to their strengths through the first four matchups, Minot and Valley City were at an impasse, tied 2-2, with one match left to decide the state championship. The deciding match would pair Valley City 8th grader Skye Neilson against Minot’s top singles player, senior Sidney Ressler.
S. Neilson would make her move early in the match, getting out to a 5-4 lead with a pair of set point opportunities to stake herself to an early lead. However, Ressler would fight off both set points to tie the match at 5-5. After shaking off the disappointment of not finishing her opponent, S. Neilson regrouped to take the next two games to finish a 7-5 first-set win.
About halfway through the second set, both doubles matches concluded, letting Neilson and Ressler know their match would decide the state championship. With the gravity of the situation apparent to both players, it was time to write the final chapter of the 2024 tennis season.
That final chapter would be one of poise and control, as S. Neilson rattled off point after point and game after game to set up match point, leading 5-2. Much like the entire match, S. Neilson would finish off the match cool, calm, and collected to seal the second-ever state championship for Valley City.
Coach Neilson reflected on his teams’ performance to finish this historic season: “They never let the moment get too big. They never got down on themselves. They always believed in themselves and their teammates. We preach that if you control the things you can control and you let go of everything you can’t control, the results take care of themselves. Our players did that today – the results took care of themselves.”
The state tournament continues today and Saturday, with singles and doubles tournaments. Martineck and Sufficool are looking to defend their titles, along with Zaun and K. Neilson in doubles. Skye Neilson is Valley City’s lone qualifier in singles play.
Results: Valley City Listed First
Quarterfinal
#1E Valley City 3
#4W Bismarck Century 2
#1S Kailee Nielson defeated Erika Lee 6-4, 6-3
#2S Georgia Zaun defeated Ava Dunlop 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
#3S Skye Nielson lost to Kyla Jorgenson 5-7, 6-3, 6-1
#1D Breck Sufficool/Alyssa Thomsen defeated Kate Miller/Mykaela Jorgenson 6-3, 6-0
#2D Abby Martineck/Ella Olson lost to 6-1, 4-6, 7-5
Semifinal
#1E Valley City 3
#2W Bismarck Legacy 2
1S. Kailee Nielson lost to Aleah McPherson 6-1, 6-3
2S. Georgia Zaun lost to Halle Seversen 6-4, 6-2
3S. Skye Nielson defeated Cambrya Kraft 6-2, 6-1
1D. Breck Sufficool/Alyssa Thomsen defeated Brooklyn Sand/Maria Barrett 6-1, 6-3
2D. Abby Martineck/Ella Olson defeated Cassidee Jones/Caylin Kraft 6-2, 1-6, 6-4
Championship
#1E Valley City 3
#1W Minot 2
1S. Skye Nielson defeated Sidney Ressler 7-5, 6-2
2S. Ella Olson lost to Kyllie Fettig 6-0, 6-0
3S. Alyssa Thomsen lost to Sienna Ronning 6-0, 6-0
1D. Breck Sufficool/Abby Martineck defeated Grace Olson/Lila Olson 6-4, 6-3
2D. Kailee Nielson/Georgia Zaun defeated Ava Thuner/Reese Goodman 6-4, 6-1