photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State senior Annie Pilakowski starts her serve during the 6A Gardner Edgerton regional tournament at Gardner Edgerton High School on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in Gardner.

Gardner — Free State’s girls tennis team finished as the runner-up in the 6A Gardner Edgerton regional that featured eight other teams, including Lawrence.

The Firebirds trailed only Olathe Northwest for the overall team score as both singles players and the top doubles team qualified for the state tournament by placing in the top six.

“Everybody, top to bottom, played well today,” Free State coach Aaron Clark said. “These days can get pretty tough, especially after you qualify, what kind of energy do you have? Do you want that last match? Everybody continued to play better throughout the day, which is what they’ll need next week when we go to state.”

Freshman Eli Ward came in as the top singles player in the region and ended with her title intact. Ward had a bye for the first round and won 6-0, 6-1 against Briony Rowland from Olathe South in her first match. Ward then beat Blue Valley West’s top singles player Srihitha Ananthaneni 6-0 in both sets to reach the semifinal. There, she beat the No. 4-seeded Heidi Baillos in two sets 6-2, 6-0, to reach the championship match.

Ward beat Olathe North’s Diya Gupta in the championship for the closest match of the day. Ward won the first set 6-4, and after a close, back-and-forth start to the second set, won 6-3 to win the regional.

“Eli had a good chance to be truly challenged in those pressure moments,” Clark said. “She did great.”

Senior Cami Lee started with a bye as well and won her first match over Olathe West’s Sophie Templeton in two sets (6-2, 6-3). Lee lost to Gupta 6-2 in both sets in the third round, sending her to the fifth-place bracket. There, Lee bounced back after losing the first set 6-3 to win the next two 6-0 and reach the fifth-place match. Lee lost to the fifth-seeded Lindsay Ruder from Olathe West in two sets (6-4, 6-0) to place sixth overall.

“She really battled, she did a great job,” Clark said. “She challenged Ruder in that fifth-place match, who is a good player, and made her earn that victory.”

Lawrence’s two singles players each lost in their first match of the tournament. Emma Over lost 8-1 in the first round, and Lucy Miller-Coleman lost 6-0 in two sets after a first-round bye.

For the Lions, this season was one for development. The Lions had a team that was young and new to varsity, so learning how to compete in postseason tournaments like the Sunflower League and regionals was an important step for the Lions for the future.

Free State’s top doubles team of seniors Taryn Jones and Annie Pilakowski won the first match against Olathe South’s team in three sets. After winning the first set, the Falcons beat the Firebirds 7-5, but Jones and Pilakowski bounced back to win in the final set.

They lost their second match in two sets to the eventual fourth-place doubles team from Blue Valley. In the fifth-place bracket, Jones and Pilakowski won 6-1, 6-4 against Blue Valley West’s doubles team to secure their ticket in the state tournament and the fifth-place regional match. There, they lost 6-4, 6-1, to place sixth in the tournament.

“They kind of had a rough week last week and came in as the seventh seed,” Clark said. “They finished fifth, which was great. They’ll have a great shot next week.”

Free State’s second doubles team of sophomore Hina Tamura and senior Violet Nelson got a tournament win by beating Lawrence’s No. 2 doubles team of Makayla Denton and Lily Baldridge 8-1. Free State’s duo lost the next match in two sets to conclude its tournament run.

Lawrence’s top doubles team of Ellorie Severin and Kate Neilson received a first-round bye but lost 6-0 in both sets in its second match.

For the six Firebirds whose season continues at the state tournament, they’ll attack the next week with practices before the two-day state tournament starts on Friday at the College Boulevard Activity Center in Olathe.

“This regionals singles-wise was pretty deep… so singles-wise I feel like they’re kind of sitting where they want to be, and doubles is open to a certain degree,” Clark said. “(Jones and Pilakowski) had a great day today, which will presumably help them next week, and they should feel great about their opportunity to get to day two (of the state tournament).”

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State senior Cami Lee follows through her serve during the 6A Gardner Edgerton regional tournament at Gardner Edgerton High School on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in Gardner.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State freshman Eli Ward returns the ball during the 6A Gardner Edgerton regional tournament at Gardner Edgerton High School on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in Gardner.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State senior Taryn Jones watches the ball during the 6A Gardner Edgerton regional tournament at Gardner Edgerton High School on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in Gardner.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State senior Cami Lee hits the ball during the 6A Gardner Edgerton regional tournament at Gardner Edgerton High School on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in Gardner.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Free State freshman Eli Ward swings at the ball during the 6A Gardner Edgerton regional tournament at Gardner Edgerton High School on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in Gardner.