Oct. 22—MINNEAPOLIS — No. 1-ranked and defending state champion Mayo made easy work of unseeded Eden Prairie in the first round of the Class 2A team tournament, blasting the Eagles 7-0 at the University of Minnesota’s Baseline Tennis Center on Tuesday morning.
Mayo won all but one of the matches in straight sets. That included the state’s top-two ranked players — sisters Claire Loftus and Aoife Loftus — winning 6-0, 6-1 and 6-0, 6-2 at Nos. 1 and 2 singles, respectively.
At No. 3 singles, No. 7-ranked Malea Diehn won 6-0, 6-0.
Mayo’s only challenge came at No. 3 doubles where the Spartans’ Grace Pickering and Emily Loftus won 6-3, 4-6, 10-4.
The unbeaten Spartans (22-0) will next play the winner between No. 4 seed Maple Grove and No. 5 Elk River at 8 a.m. Wednesday in the semifinals. The championship is slated for 4 p.m.
Mayo beat Edina 6-1 in last year’s state title dual. The Hornets are the No. 2 seed and bracketed opposite Mayo. Mayo has beaten Edina in both their meetings this season, 6-1 and 5-2.
QUARTERFINALS
Mayo 7, Eden Prairie 0
Singles: Claire Loftus (M) def. Lakshanya Selvakumar 6-0, 6-1; Aoife Loftus (M) def. Mya Maras 6-0, 6-2; Malea Diehn (M) def. Ziwei Chen 6-0, 6-0; Eliana Elder (M) def. Sofia Summers 6-1, 6-1. Doubles: Keely Ryder/Ana Medina (M) def. Elzeda Walvante 6-4, 6-0; Charlotte Colby/Diane Meunier (M) def. Maya Varikuti/Addison Premo 6-1, 6-2; Grace Pickering/Emily Loftus (M) def. Tessa Plourde/Isabelle Nowacki 6-3, 4-6, 10-4.
