Munster’s Tallamraju wins girls state tennis singles, Jasper reigns again in doubles

INDIANAPOLIS — Jasper’s stranglehold on the IHSAA girls state doubles tennis championship was tightened on Saturday.

For the fourth year in a row, the Wildcats won the state doubles title. The duo of senior Adaysha Smiley and sophomore Stella Knies were the latest pair to earn real estate in high school championship lore. They defeated Carmel seniors Madison Littell and Gabby Hall in straight sets, 6-4, 7-6 (7-1), at Park Tudor to complete the four-peat.

“Obviously, we could’ve easily let go and be negative, but we just made sure to have each other’s backs,” Smiley said. “Just making sure that we really took deep breathes every point, not taking anything for granted, not let ups because they were undefeated. They were very good …

“We were good at the net. We played our game. We didn’t stray away from that, so I think that’s also the biggest thing. Just playing Jasper doubles how we’re doing, it works out.”

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Smiley’s jubilation was reminiscent of last season’s win. As a junior, she was paired with then-senior Reese Mundy. They clinched the team’s third gold medal in a row before Knies, a sophomore, was plugged into the vacant role this season.

“I mean obviously, I was hoping to play this spot,” Knies said. “Practiced a lot of doubles over the winter, not being in the lineup last year … I just kept going for it.”

Knies and Smiley opened their state title quest with a tough battle against Silver Creek in the state semifinals on Saturday morning. They secured the first set, 6-2, before they lost the second set, 5-7. They closed out the match with a 6-1 win in set three.

That clash turned out to be a prelude to what the Wildcats orchestrated in the state finals in the afternoon. They were the aggressors against a talented Carmel pair and didn’t panic when things went astray.

“We felt pretty confident that we could win this morning’s match which almost didn’t go that way, but we prepared all week with different sets and we stuck to it,” said Jasper coach Scott Yarbrough. “We stayed with this I Formation which is on the one side. We didn’t go away from it, even though it wasn’t always working and we wanted to stick with that and really stuck to the gameplan really well.

“Poaching when we were supposed to and I felt down the stretch we were the aggressor. I felt we got to the net, put more balls away than they did.”

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Jasper’s four-peat was started at Park Tudor in 2023. On Saturday, the Wildcats returned to their state title stomping grounds and laid claim to their dominance for the fourth straight time. It was a reminder to everyone watching that they are the team to beat in doubles.

Smiley and Knies finished the season with a 17-2 regular season record and a 9-0 run in the postseason as a doubles team. They carried the torch for Jasper’s state dynasty.

“The way we’re coaching doubles works,” Yarbrough said. “You’ve got players that listen and are coachable. You’ve got kids that buy into your system. You’ve got coaches that believe in their kids.”

Tallmraju took a deep breath and tapped her racket on the fence before she walked up to the baseline to serve in set three of the singles state finals against Brebeuf Jesuit junior Chloe Wendowski.

She had won set one, 6-0, before she plummeted to a 0-6 loss in set two. By set three, she fought through exhaustion and found a second wave.

She was zeroed in on a state title.

The sophomore dug down deep and triumphed in set three, 6-0.

Tallamraju prevailed over Wendowski in three sets and became the first singles champion from Munster since 2009.

“The second set was tough, she just really stepped it up,” Tallamraju said. “In the third set, I just came with the energy … Last year, I got (beat) by an amazing player, but I really wanted this win, so I had put all my effort in, and I did that.”

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Tallamraju’s resilience in set three showed how iron-willed she is. She is a motivated tennis player with a drive fit for a champion. Her work ethic is methodical. She’s aware of the work and mindset needed to play at a high level.

She lost just one match in the last two years. Her last defeat was at last year’s state semifinals to eventual champion Samaya Smith from Warren Central. Her freshman demise powered her comeback in year two of high school.

She orchestrated a 16-0 regular season record and 10-0 postseason run as a sophomore. Her winning edge didn’t waver when pitted against adversity in the state championship on Saturday.

“She had to stay composed within herself,” said Munster coach Patrick Spohr. “The second set, fatigue started to set in a little bit. We had to calm her down after she lost that second set, going into the third. We just had to remind her that the other girl played in a full three-set match before this and it’s just going to come down to the third set. Whoever wants it more is going to have go out there and take it.”

Tallamraju wanted it more. She dominated Wendowski in set three and followed the yellow brick road towards the state promise land.

Her sophomore season is now dripped in gold. Her crowning moment was the byproduct of her hustle and heart.

“This was my definitely my hardest match,” Tallamraju said. “I grew with mental toughness, and I knew I would had to give it my all here, to really put forth all my effort and just stay positive and keep going.”

Marc Ray is a high school sports reporter at the IndyStar. He can be reached at marc.ray@indystar.com , and on X, formerly Twitter, at @themarcszn.