The girls' tennis program at Eagan appears to be in good hands for the future.
The Wildcats, with only three seniors on their roster, recently edged Class 2A, No. 8-ranked Eastview 4-3 in a matchup of South Suburban Conference rivals. They raised their overall record to 15-3 on the season with the victory.
"We have a young team that is getting better each match," Eagan coach Scott Nichols said. "We may surprise some teams in the section tournament."
Eagan freshman Samantha Nichols, Scott's daughter, posted a huge victory in the match, rallying to beat Jordan Kopfer 3-6, 6-2, 6-0 at the top singles spot. Kopfer, a junior, finished third in the individual state tournament a year ago.
Junior Anusha Arcalgud and sophomore Raechel Murray also won in singles for the Wildcats. Arcalgud is 15-3 this season while Murray has a 12-3 record.
The Wildcats' No. 2 doubles team of junior Kjorte Harra and sophomore Chloe Asuncion earned the fourth victory. They upped their record to 14-4.
"We've had great leadership and teamwork from our captains," Scott Nichols said. Arcalgud, junior Lindsey Harford and senior Linde Schaffer serve as the team captains.
Eighth-grader Lauren Ferg has a 15-3 record at the No. 2 singles spot. Samantha Nichols owns a 13-5 record.
"The team's goals for the rest of the season — finish ranked in the top 10 in the state and make it to the Section 3 team finals," Scott Nichols said.
Race all but over
The regular season in football has reached the midpoint, and it looks as if the South Suburban Conference race is all but over.
Class 2A, No. 2 Rosemount is 4-0 overall and 3-0 in the conference, the only unbeaten team in league play. The Irish rolled over Eagan 42-14 in their most recent matchup, behind three touchdowns from senior running back Dimitri Williams.
The Irish already have defeated two of the four teams directly behind them in the standings, and don't play the other two — No. 5-ranked Lakeville North and Burnsville.
Rosemount doesn't have a team currently over the .500 mark remaining on its schedule.
Top performances
• Northfield senior diver Bailey DuPay shattered her own record. DuPay posted a six-dive score of 318.25, including a pair of 10s, to break the girls' swimming pool and school record in a 95-88 dual meet victory over Faribault at the Northfield Middle School. Her previous record was 277.65. She is the three-time Class 1A state champion in diving.
• Jordan senior running back Andrew Fogarty ran for 256 yards on 25 carries and three touchdowns, leading the Hubmen to a 35-12 victory over LeSueur-Henderson in a Minnesota River Conference football matchup. Fogarty scored on runs of 1, 1 and 80 yards.
