Meet SJ-R's girls tennis POTY and other members of the all-area girls tennis team for 2023

Rochester’s Julia Musgrave became the first Rockets player to win the All-area Player of the Year award since 2019 and 2020 when Rochester won it in back-to-back seasons with graduates Shaling Reynolds and Mollie Morrisey.

Here is The State Journal-Register's all-area girls tennis team in singles and doubles from the fall season, listed in alphabetical order after Musgrave:

More: Meet the 24 players on the Springfield all-area boys soccer team for the 2023 season

Julia Musgrave, Rochester

Musgrave shined in both singles and doubles this season to earn the All-area Player of the Year honor. As the No. 1 seed, the junior reached the Illinois High School Association Class 1A state finals with a second-place finish at the Alton Marquette Sectional.

Musgrave reached the third round of the consolation state bracket after claiming a pair of wins. She ended the tournament with a loss to Jerseyville’s Libby McCormick, who defeated her in the sectional title match.

Musgrave set herself up for a state run with some notable finishes early in the season. She placed second in the No. 1 singles flight at the Springfield Invite and was also second in the top draw at the Central Illinois Invite, hosted by Sacred Heart-Griffin at Washington Park.

As a fourth seed at the Central State Eight Conference tournament, she paired up with teammate Raleigh Meneghetti and the two were victorious in three sets in the third-place doubles match.

SINGLES

MK Christie, Sacred Heart-Griffin

The senior had a magical run at the Class 1A Alton Marquette Sectional when she won her first two matches in three sets as a sixth seed.

Christie’s quarterfinal win (6-2, 1-6, 6-4) over third seed Aly Young of Quincy Notre Dame, advanced her to the state tournament. She placed fourth at sectional, losing to Meneghetti 6-3, 3-6, 6-4. The unseeded Christie went 0-2 at state.

She had a fifth-place showing in the No. 2 singles draw at the Springfield Invite. Her win in the No. 1 singles championship draw to go with a win in the back draw helped SHG claim the title at the Central Illinois Invite.

Raleigh Meneghetti, Rochester

The senior made her first state appearance in singles when she finished third at the Class 1A Alton Marquette Sectional.

Meneghetti survived her second-round sectional match in three sets and then won the quarterfinal with a straight-sets win. She got her first state victory with a 6-3, 7-6 (4) triumph over Serena Bhatia of Mundelein Carmel in the consolation’s first round. Meneghetti ended state with a 1-2 record.

Her season accomplishments included a singles title in the No. 2 singles flight at the Central Illinois Invite and a second-place showing at the Springfield Invite, also at No. 2.

Samantha Shankland, Chatham Glenwood

The junior won the CS8 tournament draw with a victory over teammate Ellie Surges. Shankland, seeded fifth, fell in the Class 2A quarterfinals at the Belleville West Sectional and did not make a return trip to the state finals after winning two matches last season in Class 1A.

Shankland teamed up with Simmi Mander and won the No. 1 doubles flight by beating the CS8 champs Haley Martin and Emma Eovaldi of U-High 7-5, 6-3 in the title match at the Springfield Invite.

Ellie Surges, Chatham Glenwood

The sophomore improved throughout the season and came on strong late by getting to the CS8 championship match and losing to Shankland 4-6, 6-0, 6-1.

Her run at the CS8 tournament helped Glenwood claim a 26-25 victory over Normal U-High after she beat second seed Risha Patel 6-0, 6-0 in the semifinals. Surges also gained some experience at the state level when she qualified for the Class 2A finals after a fourth-place finish at the Belleville West Sectional.

As the sectional’s sixth seed, Surges posted straight-sets wins over Springfield High’s Myla Shannon and O’Fallon’s Analiese Reidelberger. Surges finished state with a 0-2 record in her first appearance.

More: Deferential stars: Soccer POTYs Rochester's Spengler, Williamsville's Bodine pass credit

DOUBLES

Nischi Korrapati/Ester Rossi, Springfield High

Korrapati teamed up with Rossi — and after a three-set win in the quarterfinals of the Belleville West Sectional — the seniors eventually took third place to advance to the Class 2A state doubles finals.

The first-time doubles duo lost both matches at state, including a three-set tiebreak loss in the first-round consolation match. Korrapati and Rossi were upset in the quarterfinals of the CS8 meet and settled for fifth place.

Korrapati, an All-area pick for four straight seasons, ended her career with three straight state appearances — twice in singles. She had a signature singles win this past season by beating Musgrave 5-7, 6-0, 10-8 in a dual meet on Sept. 9. Rossi, a foreign exchange student from Italy, makes her first All-area team.

Simmi Mander/Elise DeStasio, Chatham Glenwood

The senior doubles tandem finished second at the CS8 tournament, falling to Martin and Eovaldi 7-5, 6-3 in the championship match.

Mander and DeStasio — playing in their first full season as doubles partners — fell short of qualifying for state after losing to Lily Hayes and Pheobe Hayes of Quincy 6-3, 6-3 in the second round of the Class 2A Belleville West Sectional.

In 2022, Mander and graduate Amber Ehrlich went all the way to the Class 1A state semifinals and nabbed a fourth-place finish. DeStasio advanced to state with graduate Julia Kagan and finished 0-2.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Springfield IHSA all-area girls tennis team for 2023