The varsity tennis team played its first tournament of the 2025 spring season in both doubles and singles matches against Fulshear High School, Cleveland High School and Paetow High School at Chancellors Family Center on Jan. 10.
Freshman Connie Krane played three sets in the girls’ C division draw, winning 8-5, 8-4 and 8-5 in the finals against Fulshear High School and Paetow High School. This was Krane’s first official tournament of her high school career.

“I was definitely nervous going into the tournament, especially for my first game,” Krane said. “By the next game, I was feeling more confident because I had won my first game and was able to see the skill levels of the other players. I was going pretty strong until the third game. My opponent was a draw and I wanted to quit then and there because it had been a long day.”

With her first tournament under her belt as a win, Krane has never felt better.

“I only played middle school tournaments before, but they weren’t as competitive,” Krane said. “High school tournaments are a lot more serious, especially since I am on varsity.”

After this win, Krane had set some goals for herself she hopes to accomplish by the next tournament.

“I definitely want to move up a draw,” Krane said. “Since [the C girls’ singles draw] was the lowest and I was able to get some good plays, next time I want to challenge myself and move up to the B girls’ singles draw and get better scores.”

Junior Alex Morrissette played two sets with senior Steven Lawson in the B draw of boys’ doubles against Cleveland High School and Paetow High School.

“We won our first game against Cleveland, which felt great,” Morrissette said. “This was my first time playing with Steven in a tournament, so everything was new to me. We had only practiced together during practice and in scrimmages.”

The pair’s first half of the tournament went smoothly with a winning score of 5-0 and ended with a loss in the second game with a score of 8-6 against Paetow.

“We lost a close game because [Paetow] was a really good school,” Morrissette said. “But we did not take the loss too hard because we knew they were highly ranked. We put up a good fight.”

Despite losing the second match, Morrissette considers this tournament a victory as this is just the start of the season, and he and Lawson are still getting comfortable with each other’s playing styles.

“We found out what each other’s weaknesses are and how we can work on it for the next tournament,” Morrissette said. “We will fix our gameplay strategies and work on our volleys. Next time, we hope to take home a win.”

Going into his last spring season of high school, senior Veer Tummala was ready to start this season with high marks.

Tummala played three matches in B draw boys’ singles, winning his first two games with scores of 5-0 and 8-5.

“I played [junior] Dylan [Tran] for my second game,” Tummala said. “It was an eight-game process, and he goes to [Bellaire High School], so it was a chill game.”

Tummala took home the win in the finals against Ridgepoint High School with a score of 9-7.

“All of my opponents were all pretty friendly and had good competition, especially the final match,” Tummala said. “I think it was really close, and we both enjoyed it even though he lost. We came together at the net at the end of the game, and overall, it was a good time.”

Tummala’s tactic for his victories is to “just play the game.” He keeps this mindset for every game he plays, which allows him to enjoy the match rather than get blinded by competition.

“I know going into [every game] that I could win, so I stuck to the motto that I gave myself, giving me the confidence that I know that I can win,” Tummala said.