Iron Horse girls tennis team wins state championship!

Steve Cohen celebrated the Philip Simmons High School girls’ state championship as a coach and a parent.

 

The Iron Horses claimed the Class AAA state championship Nov. 4 with a 6-0 victory over Daniel in Florence. It was Cohen’s first year as the head coach, after spending five years as an assistant.

 

“It was overwhelming to win it in my first year,” said Cohen, who has been a part of the Iron Horse’s two state titles in the past three years. “I’m especially happy for our four seniors. They went out winners.”

 

Cohen has two daughters on this year’s team, No. 1 singles player Ansley Cohen and No 4 singles player Harper Cohen.

 

“They have provided me with a lifetime of memories,” coach Cohen said. “Winning this one, this is something I’ll savor for the rest of my life.”

 

The Iron Horses swept the singles matches as Ansley Cohen, Amelia Whirrett, Molly Paige Steinfort, Harper Cohen and Jolie Mello were impressive.

 

Crisleni Martinez-Valdez and Regan Donley won in No. 2 doubles.

 

“Ansley, Molly Paige and Jolie won their matches quickly,” Cohen said. “Then Amelia and Harper finished at the same time to give us the ‘W.’ Then we all watched our (No. 2) doubles team win their second-tie-breaker 11-9. It was a team effort.”

 

Ansley Cohen, Whirrett, Donley and Martinez-Valdez are the seniors on the 2023 edition of PSHS tennis.

 

Cohen said the loss of the four seniors will mean the 2024 team will be different.

 

“We lose a lot of talent,” he said. “It won’t be as easy. It will take a lot of work. But we are ready to do the work.”

 

BE girls tennis team loses in state finals

 

Meanwhile, the fourth time wasn’t the charm for the Bishop England High School girls’ tennis team as they lost 5-0 to Ocean- side Collegiate Academy in the Class AA state championship in a match that was contested in Florence.

 

The Bishops and Landsharks split decisions in the regular-season and finished tied for first in Region 7-AA. OCA won the-tie-breaker match to gain the No. 1 seed in the playoffs while the Bishops were the No. 2 seed. 

 

OCA claimed its third straight state championship with the win over BE in the championship.