LHS tennis season underway

The Lennox High School Oriole girls’ tennis team opened its 2026 season last week, taking on St. Thomas More on Wednesday, Aug. 12. Lennox fell to St. Thomas More, 7-2, in its season opener.

The Orioles were scheduled to compete at home on Tuesday, Aug. 18, against Yankton and Vermillion. Lennox will then host Spearfish on Thursday, Aug. 20, with the dual scheduled for 2 p.m. at the Lennox High School tennis courts.

The Orioles will travel to Madison for competition Friday and Saturday, Aug. 21-22, before heading to Brandon on Monday, Aug. 24, to face Brandon Valley and Sioux Falls Roosevelt.

Lennox will return home Thursday, Aug. 27, to host Milbank. They will host Madison on Sept. 8 before traveling to Milbank on Sept. 22 to face off against Milbank and Aberdeen Roncalli. On Oct. 1 they travel to Madison. The State A Tournament will be held Oct. 5-6 in Rapid City. 

The 2026 season marks the 10th year as head coach for Kevin Plank, who brings extensive experience to the Lennox program. Before moving to South Dakota, Plank was a full-time tennis teaching professional and coached boys and girls high school tennis for four years in Omaha, Nebraska. He has spent 20 years as a full-time tennis teaching professional in South Dakota and has coached at three other schools before starting the Lennox program.

The Orioles are coming off a 2025 season in which they posted a 5-6 overall record and went 4-4 in Class A competition. The season included a milestone team victory over Huron, marking the first team win in program history.

Lennox also had a strong showing at the state tournament in 2025. The No. 2 doubles team of Karlie Bosma and Bri Slack placed fifth, while Bosma finished sixth at Flight 2 singles. Brooklyn Buehner also captured the consolation championship at Flight 1.

This year’s team will look considerably different, however, after graduating five of the top eight players from last year’s squad.

“We graduated the core of their varsity lineup and some other key players to the team,” Plank said.

That turnover creates opportunities for several players to step into varsity roles.

Among the players Plank expects to make significant strides are Ella Ellwein and Maliyah Hofer, who both made tremendous improvements during the offseason. Other players who could make an impact include Gracie Wood, Sierra Wesseling, Peyton Herlyn, Reba Schroeder and Kenzie Bosma.

While the Orioles will be young in several spots, they will have experience at the top of the lineup. Returning starters Karlie Bosma and Brooklyn Buehner, who played No. 1 and No. 2 singles last season, respectively, will provide leadership for the younger players.

“I will lean on them to provide leadership and guidance to the up-and-comers,” Plank said.

The development of those new varsity players will be one of the biggest storylines throughout the season.

“The biggest question mark will be in the development of the new varsity players,” Plank said. “With the season as short as it is, I hope they have time to develop and peak at the right time.”

Plank expects several teams to be among the key opponents for Lennox this season, specifically Sioux Falls Christian, Rapid City Christian and St. Thomas More.

He also expects the Class A field to provide plenty of surprises.

“I’m not sure, but there is often a dark horse that surprises teams,” he said.

The Orioles’ early-season schedule should give them plenty of opportunities to test themselves. 

“I think there will be a lot of close duals,” Plank said.

Despite the loss of several key players from last year’s team, Plank believes Lennox has an opportunity to put together a successful season.

“We are not the only team to lose some key seniors, so I think we, along with a few other teams, have a chance to do well if the team is prepared and competes all season,” he said.

With experienced players leading the way and several newcomers competing for varsity spots, the Orioles will look to develop throughout the season and be at their best when postseason competition arrives.

The 2026 Orioles roster includes (*denotes returning starters): Marin Bartscher, Karlie Bosma*, Kenzie Bosma, Brooklyn Buehner*, Ava Elk Boy, Ella Ellwein*, Brooklyn Fodness, Izzy Gerdes, Tori Gerdes, Peyton Herlyn, Krystal Hofer, Maliyah Hofer, Karissa Iken, Alissa Johanson, Lily Kezar, Madelyn Klenner, Sophia Onnen, Ariana Poppens, Nora Roitegui, Reba Schroeder, Zada Storm, Olivia Wallenstein, Sierra Wesseling, Adaleigh Wesselink, Gracie Wood, and Alaysia Young.