For the third year in a row, the Becker tennis team qualified for the MSHSL State Class AA tennis tournament by claiming the Section title.

Becker claimed the hardware with two wins last Friday, first downing Sartell and then defeating Monticello.

“It is our third straight 8AA title and state berth,” Coach Hokan Bengtson said after the final match.  “I am so proud of our kids and coaches.  All year we talked about time under tension and how that builds strength and fortitude.  That testing was evident in our performance Friday and the way that we played in two big matches!”

In the semifinal win over Sartell, Becker won 5-2, winning all the singles matches and dropping just one doubles match before the Bulldogs conceded the #3 match in order to get ready for the finals.  That match was held in Sauk Rapids.

Then, it was a quick trip down the road to Sartell to face Monticello for the Section 8AA title.  Becker played the Magic just three weeks ago for the Conference title and won a nailbiter, 4-3.

This time, the Bulldogs won 5-2 and played incredible tennis.

Nuest picked up the third win for Becker at #2 singles, improving to 21-4 on the season and earning praise from Bengtson: “he just knows how to win.”

Next came a surprise for the Bulldogs, as their #3 doubles team of Nathan Weiss and Jon Drury picked up a convincing 6-4, 6-2 win over their opponents from Monticello who had beat them three weeks earlier in straight sets.

The #1 doubles team of Sawyer Brown and Garret Lane then took their opponent to a third set tiebreaker; the Magic duo had also beat them in straight sets in the conference title match.

The final winning point for Becker came from Zach Bengtson at #1 singles, as the senior showed stellar character to hang on for the win.

After winning the first set 6-3, and being up 5-0 in the second, his opponent rattled off seven straight games to take the second set. 

With the Section Title, Becker improved to 19-5 on the season and will play in the state tournament, which starts June 4th at the University of MN.  This week, the Bulldogs will participate in the Individual Section tournament, hosting games Monda and then playing Thursday at St. Cloud Tech.

Players on the state tournament team include: Zach Bengtson, Landon Peterson, Brock and Adler Herdina, Troy Nuest, Sawyer Brown, Garret Lane, Carter Ager, Nathan Weiss, Jon Drury, John Boecker, and Matthew Warhol.