BENTONVILLE — The receptionist’s desk at the Tiger Athletic Complex is a little cluttered.
Off to one side of the desk are nearly a dozen trophies, recognizing conference championships, state runner-up finishes and state championships. They are all waiting to find a home in a trophy case somewhere in the TAC.
The Bentonville girls and boys tennis teams have added their share of hardware.
The Lady Tigers continued their dominance in the fall with a conference and state championship. The Lady Tigers have won three of the last four state championships.
The Tigers also had a pretty good year, winning the 7A-West Conference title before finishing second at the state tournament.
The Lady Tigers doubles team of Amy Andersen and Kendall Kraus delivered conference and state championships while Oksana Hillyer won the conference tourney before finishing second at the Class 7A State Tournament.
For their efforts, Andersen and Kraus are the All-Northwest Arkansas Girls Doubles Players of the Year, while Hillyer wins the honor as the Girls Singles Player of the Year.
And the awards don’t stop with the girls teams. The Tigers doubles team of Zach Ellis and Matt Tabler also delivered conference and state championships, and the sophomore duo is the Boys Doubles Players of the Year.
Andersen, Kraus and Hillyer are all seniors that were part of four conference championship teams and three state title winners. Andersen will play tennis at Colorado Christian next year, while Hillyer will play for Harding. Kraus is still mulling several options.
Bentonville coach Paul Pautsch said the three seniors were the backbone of the Lady Tigers’ program the last few years.
“They were great team leaders,” Pautsch said. “Kendall Kraus has a lot of talent. Oksana and Amy were the workhorses for us for all four years. They were all a big part of the last four teams. They could have easily won a state championship last year; we lost by three points and were in a position to win it.
“They have set the bar high for us, and I can brag on Amy, Oksana and Kendall all day long.”
Lady Tigers’ Success
Andersen teamed with Alice Havner to win the Class 7A doubles title in 2007, and she and Kraus finished second at state as juniors.
That second-place finish in 2008 was more than enough motivation for Andersen and Kraus to take the next step as seniors. They won the Class 7A title without losing a set.
Anderson was an all-conference selection all four of her years in a Lady Tigers uniform.
“Kendall and I are really strong together,” Andersen said. “Our whole team was strong and I knew we could pull it off and win a (team) state championship.”
Pautsch called his top girls doubles team the best in the state before the conference tournament, and Kraus said she didn’t mind the pressure.
“Expectations were high after (finishing second as juniors),” Kraus said. “But Amy and I knew we could meet them because of the experience we had. I thought we communicated much better on the court this year.”
Hillyer was the runner-up at the state tournament and was the 7A-West Conference singles champion her junior and senior seasons. Hillyer had to defeat Fort Smith Southside’s Ali Grahl in order for Bentonville to win conference, and she delivered with a 6-2, 6-4 decision.
Bentonville has won the last seven conference tournaments and four of the last five state titles, and Hillyer’s 6-1, 6-2 victory against Russellville’s Stephanie Gray helped seal this year’s state championship.
“I had played that girl in a lot of tournaments, and each time it was a tough match,” Hillyer said. “I just made her move and I think she just wore down.”
Young Tigers
Ellis and Tabler both gained valuable state tournament experience as freshmen singles players a year ago but switched to doubles this year and became the top doubles team after Pautsch had to discipline several players. The duo lost in the finals of the Overall Tournament, which takes the winners from each of the different state tournaments.
“We hedged around with what we were going to do with the boys doubles and I hadn’t made up my mind,” Pautsch said. “Then I had a couple of instances where we had to discipline some kids and that made the task easier. They played No. 2 all year long (for Bentonville) and then they won the state title.
“I couldn’t ask for two nicer kids. They go out of their way to help the other kids. We started out with 60 kids on the team and they don’t care who they are hitting with. To me, that says something.”
Ellis said switching to doubles was an easy transition.
“The key is that Matt and I know each other’s strengths and weaknesses,” Ellis said. “Playing as a freshman helped me because I got to play against older guys.”
Tabler agreed.
“We won because we communicate real well when we are out there playing,” Tabler said. “This experience will help us next year, I think we will win it again.”
Pautsch said next year’s boys’ team may be the best ever at Bentonville.
“Our boys team next year, we will contend,” Pautsch said. “We will be solid. I wouldn’t want to play us too many times (next year). I’m picking up two eighth-graders that are going to be really good.”