Claire Loftus wins the state tennis title for the second year in a row

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. (KTTC) – For the second year in a row, Claire Loftus is the singles state champion.

Loftus won the Class AA title by defeating Elk River’s Ava Nelson, who exited in the third set with an injury. The victory capped a remarkable season and an incredible career.

“She is the best player in the history of Mayo women’s tennis,” said Mayo Tennis Head Coach Jeff Demaray. “Not only is she a great tennis player, but she’s actually a better person.”

Loftus entered the tournament as the number one seed and secured her spot in the championship after defeating Eagan’s Cassandra Li in three sets in the semifinals earlier in the day. The shortened victory ended their quest for consecutive titles.

“Obviously I’m really happy that I can repeat what I did last year,” Loftus said. “I was pretty happy with the way I played and competed.”

Loftus came out of the gate hot, but Nelson stormed back to take the first set 7-5. The second set was a tough battle with Loftus winning 7-5. She led 2-0 in the third set before Nelson retired.

“Obviously it’s a tough way for Ava to finish the season and finish this game,” Loftus said.

Lotfus’ successes with the Spartans made school history.

“It’s definitely really exciting to be the first to do it back-to-back in both team and individual,” Loftus said. “So I’m really excited and there’s really no better way to end my high school career than like this.”

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