By Becky Walz,
Showcasing the hardware and trophies following gold and silver medal performances at the state tennis tournament Wednesday are the Decorah players and parents (l-r) Rachelle Branum, Caden Branum, Mark Branum, Adam Baker, Kim Stieber, Landon Baker, Daniel Skrade, Miriam Skrade and Paul Skrade. (submitted photo)
Junior Caden Branum etched his name in the record books last week as the first Decorah tennis player to be crowned an individual champion, while Daniel Skrade and Landon Baker was the first doubles team since 1999 to reach the finals. It was only the second time the Vikes had both singles and doubles in the finals at state, the only other time was in 1995.
The 16 district winners and runners-up in singles and doubles came together for the Class 1A state boys individual and doubles tournament Tuesday and Wednesday, May 23-24, at Byrnes Park in Waterloo.
““I’m just thrilled to see all of the hard work pay off for all these boys, I think it will take a few days for it to sink in fully. It was great to see all of the support from fans young to old cheering on Decorah for an incredible two days. Thank to you to all,” said Coach Matt Anderson.
Champion Branum
In singles play, Caden Branum, the returning runner-up and top seed, had a tough draw in the first round against a three-time state participant, Andrew Lawrence of Shenandoah. After working through some nerves, Branum’s power took over for a nice first round win, 6-1 and 6-2. In the second round, Branum had to play Xavier’s No. 2 player, Ryan Schmit, which the Vikes knew would be tough because Xavier has won team state three years in a row. Branum started slow but eventually his kick serve setup became too much to overcome earning him a spot in the semifinals.
Coach Anderson expected Wednesday was going to be tough against a strong freshman, Easton Moon, from North Polk, that he knew little about. The Viking junior started fast, but in the second set, Moon settled in and battle ensued going to a tiebreaker where experience finally won out, 6-1, 7-6 (5).
In the finals, Branum ran up against another freshman, Charlie LeGrand, from Xavier who defeated last year’s third-place finisher from North Polk. Both players had some nerves to start but both settled down and some high quality tennis ensued. At 3-4 down in the first set though, Coach Anderson and Branum talked on a break to slow down, hit big targets and play high energy point to point, and the Decorah netter went on to win nine of the next 10 games, and secure Decorah’s first ever singles championship, 6-4 and 6-1.
Silver in doubles
Decorah’s district runner-up team in doubles of Daniel Skrade and Landon Baker had tempered expectations coming into the tournament, but one wouldn’t know it from their results. On day one, they beat the third seeded and experienced team from Spencer (Owen Kierscht and Riley DeWitt), 6-3 and 6-3, before defeating a Glenwood team (Kayden Anderson and Tyler Harger) in a pair of 6-2 matches in the second round to earn a trip to the semifinals.
On Wednesday, the duo knew their opponents, Charlie Curtiss and Roan Martineau from Dubuque Wahlert well, having meet them numerous times the last few years, always coming up a bit short…but on this day, Skrade and Baker brought their best and earned a tough victory to make the finals, 6-2 and 6-4.
In the finals against Jack Briggs and Joshua Roozeboom of Pella, the Vikes played another good match, but eventually had to tip the hat, 1-6 and 0-6, to a team that was hot and had lots of prior experience.
“I couldn’t be prouder of how this team represented Decorah tennis the last two days and especially during the finals against tough opponents by fighting to the end,” said Coach Matt Anderson.
Submit A Comment
Fill out the form to submit a comment. All comments require approval by our staff before it is displayed on the website.