For the fourth time in the past five years, Rapid City Stevens is celebrating a girls state tennis championship. The Raiders came into the state tournament undefeated on the year as a team, which brought with it some pressure coming into this week.
Rapid City Stevens fought through the adversity and finished on top.
“We’ve had a great season. Our varsity ended up undefeated, our JV ended up undefeated, our middle school ended up undefeated, but it was never easy,” explained Stevens head tennis coach Jason Olson. “Going into the state tournament, there were four teams that could have won the state tournament – us, Lincoln, Harrisburg, and Mitchell. But then you had great players for Yankton, great players from Jefferson and Watertown, so there were a lot of great players.”
In the team standings, Rapid City Stevens finished with 486.5-points. Sioux Falls Lincoln came in second with 417.5 and Harrisburg took third with 381.5. Mitchell and Yankton rounded out the top five with the Kernels notching 287 and the Gazelles ending with 257.
The Raiders won three of the six singles flights and two of the three doubles flights, which helped lead the way. Sylvie Mortimer won in singles flight 2, Ella Potvin took the title in singles flight 3, and Bella Nelson claimed the top spot in singles flight 5. Kaia Carlson ended as the runner-up in singles flight 6, while Arabella Scott and Madison Marsh finished in third place for singles flight 1 and singles flight 4.
In doubles, Scott and Potvin took first in flight 2, while Nelson and Elena Braun won it in singles flight 3. Mortimer and Marsh finished in fifth in flight one doubles.
Rapid City Stevens varsity roster this season was made up of four seniors – Scott, Marsh, Mortimer, and Braun. To say the upperclassmen are happy about Friday’s outcome would be an understatement.
“It really means the world to me, because we worked so hard this year and I knew that regardless of whether we got the state championship this year or not, it would be a meaningful season,” said Scott. “It just sets up for an era of excellence for the Raiders and I cannot wait to see what they do next year when I’m in college.”
“We worked really hard this season, and we put in the work during the offseason too. I think that our team is so positive and energetic,” added Mortimer. “We really are selfless with each other and our energy is so positive and encouraging. We really just care about each other. I love this team.”
All four seniors won their final match in the tournament.
“That’s a cherry on top,” smiled Marsh. “It means so much. I’m just so happy that we got that team title this year. Just a wonderful way to go out."
“It’s everything – senior year I went in expecting just to have fun and live out my senior year,” Braun stated. “To win was everything. Varsity doubles is my favorite, and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”
The Raiders also had two underclassmen who contributed with varsity this year – Bella Nelson is sophomore, while Ella Potvin is just a freshman. They’re both excited to take what they experienced this year and implement it next year as they move into upperclassman roles.
“It’s really exciting being on this team, as a sophomore too. It gives me confidence for the next years to come,” said Nelson. “Next year I’ll probably play higher up, so I’m hoping to win [my flight] again, and I’m hoping to lead the team to another state title.”
“I’m so glad I got to win with my team, I’m going to miss so many of [the seniors],” said Potvin. “Arabella [Scott] is like my older sister and I’m going to miss playing with her so much. Winning for their senior year is just amazing.”
While players will always come and go, one thing has remained constant with the Raiders program. This is coach Olson’s 29th season coaching girls’ tennis at Stevens high school. He’s now won eight state championships with the girl’s program and has finished runner-up twelve times. That’s an incredible success rate with the sport.
“I’ve been a Raider my whole life. I would coach nowhere else to be honest with you,” he said with an honest chuckle. “They could pay me way more money to go somewhere else. This is where I’m going to be until they don’t want me anymore. We’re not just about the varsity girls. We have our JV girls here; our parents are here. It’s a program.”
Before departing Tomar Park in Sioux Falls for the five-hour trip back west, the Rapid City Stevens team took a few photos with the new championship trophy. The pictures included a group selfie, a few formal and goofy poses, and one shot that included the athletes, coaches, and their parents. It’s a program that coach Olson says is a big family, and it certainly has that feel.
