Olsons earn state runner-up finish

By Kristi Nixon

IOWA CITY — Kaitlyn Olson and Kendall Olson made Osage High School history by becoming the first tennis players for the Green Devils in a state final.

That is not all.

The graduates from Osage are the only tennis players the school to make three straight appearances in the state field as they finished as the state runner-up following a three-set final against unseeded Central DeWitt’s duo of Brooke Bloom and Isabelle Pierce to finish 18-1.

“Super big deal,” Osage head coach Ryan McInroy said. “A lot of first times: They are the first repeat qualifier and three-time qualifiers. A lot of firsts for them. Really proud of them to get to day two and make it through the quarterfinals and semifinals.”

Kaitlyn said the biggest goal was to make it to the second day, something they were unable to do the first two seasons at state, despite obvious improvement.

“Honestly, just making it to the second day was one of the biggest goals for us,” she said. “Yesterday, we came into the tournament with a lot of pressure on us being the one seed, and we knew we could do it, but it was fact of, like, overcoming the pressure, and we had a target on our back. People wanted to beat us. I thought we handled (the first day) really well.”

Kendall added, “Definitely, there was a lot of pressure on us today, I feel like. We did hit some spots throughout the day where it was a little rough, because the pressure was getting to us. Honestly, to me, being in the final for the first time was such a big deal. We’re making history. It’s monumental.”

The full story, and more photos, appear in the May 29 print and e-editions of the Enterprise Journal.