After a highly successful summer on the Junior 18's circuit, Skyline's Erin Monson now has her sights set on the Class 5A No. 1 singles championship.
When Monson arrives at the 5A state championships next month she'll be facing stiff competition from the likes of Davis' Jocelyn Jensen and Lone Peak's Kristina Doerr, as well as defending 5A champ and heavy favorite Lauren Macfarland of Weber.
For all her success last summer on the Junior national scene, trying to beat out those players to become the No. 1 singles player in prep tennis is high appeal for Monson.
"I wanna take state," she said.
To that end, Monson has honed her skills during tournaments over the last several months.
She won the Summer Sizzler, an intermountain tournament featuring players from Utah, Nevada, Wyoming, Colorado, Idaho and Montana. Nationally, she won the Fed Cup, which featured players who finished among the top six in their respective intermountain tours.
Monson also competed in the Hardcourts Tour, Roxy Junior Nationals, and Summer Sectionals, among others.
All of those tournaments helped vault her Junior National ranking up a whopping 140 places, and she's been working to translate that success at the prep level.
"It helps that I'm more experienced," Monson said of her experiences this summer. "I can handle pressure better."
When asked what weaknesses Monson had in her game, coach Joanie Daily had a difficult time coming up with anything.
"She's really mentally tough," said Daily. "She's just so talented . . . I'm not sure she has any weaknesses."
Should Monson play against Macfarlane at state, her mental toughness would certainly be tested.
Macfarlane, a senior, returns as the two-time defending champion at No. 1 singles. She was a runner-up at that spot her freshman year.
It's been Macfarlane who's eliminated Monson over the last two years, which came in the finals when the two were sophomores and in the semis last year.
Skyline's No. 2 singles player, Elisabeth Orth, would play No. 1 singles in almost every other Class 5A school, but she has no qualms about staying at No. 2 just so she doesn't have to deal with Macfarlane.
"(If I played No. 1 singles) I'd have Lauren and I'd have to deal with that," said Orth, who jokingly added. "Lauren's pretty good."
Monson has beaten Macfarlane once in seven-or-eight matches, way back in 14's, and Skyline's No. 1 player said the formula for beating her again is simple.
"It just depends on whether I'm capable of doing really well against her," said Monson.
Though she isn't unfamiliar to the top Class 5A players, it's unknown how Lone Peak's Doerr will fare at the 5A state tournament, merely because the Knights competed in Class 4A before realignment.
Doerr was the No. 1 singles champion in Class 4A last year, and she'll likely be in the mix of 5A top players this year.
Davis' Jensen, last year's runner-up, could be in that group, but she's been battling a mysterious illness since the summer.
Each of those players will probably be college-bound, including Monson. BYU and the University of Utah are both options for her, as well as schools like San Diego State.
Here is a classification-by-classification look at the girls prep tennis scene:
CLASS 5A: The Eagles' girls tennis team hasn't won a state title since 2000, but the squad already looks like they're in top form this year.
Erin Monson, Elisabeth Orth and Emily Meier all look solid at singles, and coach Joanie Daily has placed more emphasis on the team's doubles spots.
Amanda Kimball and Lydia Hays fill No. 1 doubles position, and Katie Johnston and Christiana Pinborough have been paired together for second doubles.
There doesn't appear to be anyone in 5A who can come close to matching that depth, which is a huge key in prep tennis.
Region 1 rivals Davis and Viewmont could both pose state-title challenges, and both teams will go neck-and-neck for the league championship.
Hillcrest, the two-time defending champions, lost several members from their 2004 team and appear to be in rebuilding mode. Traditional powerhouse Brighton appears to be slightly down, too. Both Hillcrest and Brighton were beaten 5-0 by Skyline in Region 2 action.
Lone Peak, who moved into 5A, might be a sleeper team.
CLASS 4A: Murray might be a slight favorite for the 4A crown.
The Spartans have three outstanding singles players in Amanda Jensen, Hanna Jensen and Ashley Lafeen, who all could play at No. 1.
Keshia Catten and Melanie Beck will play No. 1 doubles, while Koby Solorio pairs with Chavalah Washington at second doubles.
"I feel cautiously optimistic," said coach Crystal Spackman.
Two-time defending 4A champions Bountiful will likely pose a significant challenge to the Spartans, though the Braves lost several of their top players from last year, including No. 1 singles star Dee Dee Nelson.
Orem might have enough talent to compete for a top-three spot.
CLASS 3A: Defending champs Pine View look solid in the classification because of increased depth.
Last year it edged Grantsville to the title, winning by two points. This time around, coach Dow Christenson thinks his current team is stronger than last year's edition because of solid depth, particularly at singles.
Freshman Melissa Cowles, Lexi Almquist and Rebecca Wright are all solid at singles and seem dug into those three spots.
"Depth-wise, our singles is as strong as anyone in the state," said Christenson.
No. 1 doubles will be filled by Karli Hancock and Lauren Wright, and the second doubles' pair will be Hilary Heideman and Andee Gempeler.
Realignment makes Juan Diego, the Class 2A winners last year, a very interesting squad in 3A. Romina Nedakovic anchors the Soaring Eagle from her No. 1 singles position and may be the favorite to win that slot in Class 3A.
CLASS 1A/2A: Juan Diego's jump out of the classification could open the door for Waterford. The Ravens fell four points short of the Soaring Eagle at last year's state championships, but they were 12 points ahead of anyone else in 1A/2A.
Rowland Hall and St. Joseph, among others, could be contenders for top finishes.