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Fraley & Rickeman Claim Class AA State Doubles Championship

By Norm Rickeman, 10/26/14, 4:15PM CDT

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40 is a number with spiritual significance.  It is used 146 times in the Bible. Usually it refers to periods of testing, trial and tribulation:  40 days and nights of rain, 40 years in the wilderness, 40 days of temptation, etc.  Jane Fraley (’15) and Libby Rickeman (’17) had their own test in the Girls’ State Class AA Tennis Tournament doubles competition.  But the trials and tribulations would belong to their opponents.  When it mattered most, when a statement needed to be made, when games needed to be won, the Blake duo answered with an astounding run of 40-0 in match closing game wins.  They won all of their second sets 6-0.  They had straight game wins of 10, 10, 9 and 11 in their four matches.  They walked away as dominant and deserving 2014 state doubles champions.

The girls were prepared and loose going into tournament week.  The state girls’ tennis banquet was held on Monday night at the Saint Paul RiverCentre, where  Libby convinced Coach Marc Stingley to introduce Jane to the masses attending as “Jan Farley.”  The doubles competition started on Thursday, October 23 at the Baseline Tennis Center on the University of Minnesota campus.  Jane and Libby drew Haley Lickfold (’16) and Taylor Koenen (’16) of Shakopee.  After losing the first game, Jane and Libby won the next two.  But the Shakopee duo tied it at 2-2.  The next 10 games belonged to Blake in a 6-2, 6-0 win.  Next up later that day was Annagrace Norr (’15) and Brynne Hauer (’18) of Duluth East.  That match was 2-2 early in the first set when Jane and Libby again kicked it up to win the next 10 games in another 6-2, 6-0 victory.  Although it was a good first day, the players, coaches, parents and fans agreed that the second day’s competition would be tough and the girls would need to avoid the slow starts.

On Friday, October 24, the semi-finals began for Jane and Libby and that tough competition started with defending state champs Kylie Boyer (’15) and Kate Rosenow (‘15) of Rochester Mayo.  In fact, Kylie and Kate had won the state doubles title in 2 of the last 3 years and were seeking an historic third one.  The first game of the first set was long and tense as the two pairs tested each other.  After several deuces and ads both ways, Jane and Libby won it.  But Kylie and Kate fired back to take the next two games.  Blake won the next one but Mayo answered again with two straight wins.  At 2-4, it appeared that Jane and Libby might be at a disadvantage against the seasoned state champs, but they won the next two for 4-4.  Mayo won the next one and Jane and Libby quickly faced a 4-5, 15-40 deficit.  As Mayo had two set points, many Blake fans were already hoping for a comeback in the second set.  But never underestimate Jane and Libby.  They got to deuce and won the game.  That seemed to shake the gravitas of the Mayo duo and Jane and Libby won the next 9 games for a 7-5, 6-0 stunner.

 It was an all Section 6AA final as Blake faced the omnipresent McLeod sisters of Benilde-St. Margaret’s.  They had matched up in the section final and would now compete for the state title.  Paige (’16) and Taylor (’16) had wins over Coon Rapids, St. Cloud Tech and Eastview on their way to the final.  At 1-1 in the first set, Jane and Libby took over again, winning the next 11 games for a 6-1, 6-0 win.   However, serving for several championship points in the last game, Jane seemed to revert to her Jan Farley alter ego with serve and volley losses and a few double faults thrown in.  It appeared that Jan didn’t want Jane’s last match to ever end.  But it did when a Benilde shot went long. Congratulations to the talented McLeod’s who will be back next year.

Jane and Libby did it with a combination of skill, chemistry and tenacity.  They both are ranked in the coaches’ poll as top ten players in the state.  But that’s in singles which doesn’t always translate to doubles skill.  That’s where chemistry comes in.  The girls are close friends and have been playing for Blake together for four years.  They trust and rely totally on each other and play with intelligence.  And tenacity.  They never quit on a point, game, set or match.  They never get too high or too low.   Comments from opponents and their fans always include “they hit everything back”, “they are so steady” and “you can’t tell from their court demeanor whether they are ahead or behind.”  Well done Libby, as she and Jane made for very intimidating competition for their opponents.

Jane Fraley’s high school tennis career ends with this AA title along with two Class A state team titles.  The two-time Blake captain was the fifth place winner in state AA singles last year.  She beat Caitlyn Merzbacher (’15) during this season and Caitlyn is now a two time winner of the state singles title.  Highlights of Jane’s career are too numerous to list, but beating Breck as an 8th grader and almost knocking Sonja Das (’14) out of sections in a 4 hour match are very memorable.  She has set an example for Libby and the rest of the squad to emulate for years to come.

Well done Jane.

Go 2015 Bears!