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Fourth Consecutive SSC Crown

By Tom Schardin, 09/26/14, 12:15PM CDT

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The Prior Lake girls tennis team wrapped yet another perfect season in the South Suburban Conference.

And now it's playoff time for the No. 2-ranked Lakers and they'll be seeking a third straight Section 3AA title.

Prior Lake finished the regular season Sept. 25 with a 7-0 SSC home win over Burnsville, the Lakers' 35th straight conference win and fourth league title in a row.

Prior Lake is also the No. 1 seed in Section 3AA for a fourth straight year. First-round play starts Sept. 30, but the Lakers (11-1 overall, 9-0 in the SSC) will get a bye in the 15-team field and open the quarterfinals at home Oct. 2 at 4 p.m.

Eagan and No. 8 Eastview are expected to be the No. 2 and 3 seeds, respectively. The Lakers beat Eagan 7-0 and earned a 4-3 win over Eastview in league play this fall.

When complete brackets become available, they can be found at www.mshsl.org. The section semifinals and the title match are Oct. 7 and 9 at Lifetime Fitness in Lakeville.

Prior Lake's only loss this fall is to No. 1 Edina, winners of the last 17 Class AA state titles. The No. 1 Hornets beat the Lakers 6-1 Sept. 22.

Meanwhile, in beating Burnsville, the Lakers jumbled the lineup, but with similar success. Prior Lake didn't lose a set in the sweep.

Winning in singles was ninth-grader Taylor Jackson at No. 1 (6-0, 6-1), junior Grayce Petersen at No. 2 (6-0, 6-0), junior Kayli French at No. 3 (6-0, 6-1) and senior Erin Swanson at No. 4 (6-2, 6-0).

In doubles, getting wins for Prior Lake were junior Chloe Hall and sophomore Savanna Crowell at No. 1 (6-0, 6-0), senior Alison Wagner and junior Sydney Soeffker at No. 2 (6-2, 6-1) and eighth-grader Charlotte Bowles and ninth-grader Lindsey Henderson (6-2, 6-0).

Following the team tourney, the Section 3AA individual tournament starts Oct. 10 and ends Oct. 14 with the title matches in singles and doubles.

This year’s Class AA state team tournament is Oct . 21-22, while individual tourney is Oct. 23-24. Both are held at the Baseline Tennis Center in Minneapolis.

The Lakers were fourth at state last year and finished a program-best third in 2012. Prior Lake lost to Minnetonka both seasons in the state semifinals.