Senior Grace Saffles and junior Delanie Moore represented the Royals at the Northeast Ohio Division 1 District Tournament on Thursday and Saturday this week. After a promising result at the Sectional Tournament, where they finished as runners-up, they looked to keep improving and remain mentally tough in all circumstances. In Thursday's round of 16, they defeated a St. Joseph Academy team 6-3 6-1, sending them into the quarterfinal. They lost that match to the eventual district champions from Jackson, but they stayed alive thanks to their opening round win. Grace & Delanie returned on Saturday for a shot at the 5th and 6th state-qualifying spots. Winning the opening round on Saturday would send them through to states, while losing would be the end of their season. They had a fantastic showing of focus and determination, overcoming their nerves to beat a Revere team 6-4 6-4 to qualify them for the state tournament! Their next match was the 5th and 6th place match to determine seeding for states. They played even better in that match and defeated a tough Willoughby South team 6-2 6-2 to secure the 5th seed out of Northeast Ohio Division 1. This makes them the first state qualifiers for girls tennis since 2017, the first doubles state qualifiers in girls tennis since 2012, and the first D1 state qualifiers in program history! The girls will compete in the state tournament at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Cincinnati on Thursday morning.

2026 Division I -  Northeast District - Doubles Bracket