The Fairfield girls tennis team had a historic day at the Southeast Conference Tournament in Burlington on Thursday, September 17th, with Natalie Steele winning the conference singles championship and Sriya Yammanur and Faeven Gebremariam claiming the doubles title. All six Fairfield players earned All-Conference honors on a long and hot day that Head Coach Travis Dunkin described as great preparation for the postseason.
Singles
Natalie Steele, the No. 1 seed, rolled through the bracket without dropping a set, capping her run with a statement victory in the championship match. She defeated Ali Guyton of Burlington 6-1, 6-0 in the quarterfinals and Katana Phangchanthong of Mount Pleasant 6-1, 6-0 in the semifinals before facing two-time back-to-back Southeast Conference singles champion Nevaeh Logan of Keokuk in the championship. Steele won the first set 6-2 before Logan was forced to take a medical forfeit in the second set, giving Steele the title in what was Logan’s senior year. The victory ended Logan’s reign as conference champion and gave Steele the individual title she had been chasing throughout her career.
Steele reflected on the moment. “I think the day went great — I am so excited to have finally won,” she said. “I’ve been waiting my whole career for this moment so to finally get it is so great.” She also spoke about what her senior year has meant to her. “My senior year has meant so much to me this year and being able to compete with this team has been the biggest joy in my life.” On her mindset throughout the day, Steele said: “I felt a little nervous but once I got settled in I was cruising confidently. It prepares me for next Wednesday because it shows me what I can do as a player.”
Ria Ross, the No. 2 seed, won the quarterfinals over Kayleigh Hartman of Burlington 6-0, 6-0 before falling to Logan in the semifinals 6-4, 6-3 in a competitive match. Ross rebounded strongly in the third-place match, defeating Phangchanthong 6-0, 6-0 to claim third and earn All-Conference honors.
Coach Dunkin praised both singles players. “Natalie was on top of her game — really happy with how she played. Came to the net well, waited for her shots, stayed calm and composed herself and played outstanding tennis,” Dunkin said. On Ross, he added: “Ria struggled to get it going today — she lost so many in deuces but she played well. She just couldn’t quite finish off those deuce points. But excited for those two next week for singles.”
Doubles
Yammanur and Gebremariam, seeded second, advanced to the championship with a 6-0, 6-1 quarterfinal win over Shaye Barbee and Neva Swarm of Mount Pleasant and a hard-fought 7-6 (8-6), 6-2 semifinal win over Saoirse Hermann-Wickham and Sophia Pettit of Burlington. The championship match against Ava Fawcett and Leah Sieren of Burlington was a dramatic three-set affair. Yammanur and Gebremariam dropped the first set 2-6 before regrouping and taking the second 6-4 and the third-set tiebreaker 10-8 to claim the doubles title.
Dunkin described the championship match as a turning point in mindset. “It was a tale of two sets — they did not play well in the first set and struggled losing 2-6,” he said. “Then they flipped the switch. I talked about body language and energy and they turned it around, winning the second set 6-4 and then the third set tiebreaker 10-8. It was a great game for both sides — fun to watch. It just shows what believing, energy, and momentum can do in tennis.”
The Dunkin Duo of Mareyn and Kinzley Dunkin, seeded fifth, also had a strong day. They opened with a dominant 6-1, 6-0 quarterfinal win over Lila Cook and Bella Dodds of Mount Pleasant before falling to Fawcett and Sieren of Burlington in the semifinals 6-3, 6-3. They bounced back in the third-place match, defeating Hermann-Wickham and Pettit 6-2, 6-2 to claim third and earn All-Conference honors. Dunkin noted the loss was valuable preparation. “Mareyn and Kinzley played well. They struggled against Burlington’s number one doubles which was good for them to help prepare for next week. Only their second loss of the season so good growing pains.”
Dunkin said all six players are ready for the next challenge. “All six are ready for next week. Looking forward to it.”
Fairfield will host Class 1A Region 5 singles and doubles play on Wednesday, September 23rd beginning at 9:00 a.m., with the top finishers advancing to the state tournament. Teams competing will include Fairfield, Burlington Notre Dame, Centerville, Davis County, Fort Madison, Keokuk, Mount Pleasant, and Mount Vernon.
