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Fairfield doubles 7th at state
Ross and Yammanur shine in Iowa City; Steele 8th in singles
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
IOWA CITY — Four Fairfield tennis players got to play on the big stage on Wednesday and Thursday at the University of Iowa’s Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex for the 2025 girls state singles and doubles tournaments.
The Trojans sent two singles competitors and one doubles team to the Class 1A meet. It was the ladder that had the best finish, as the dynamic duo of Ria Ross and Sriya Yammanur finished seventh in their first ever trip to the big stage.
The Trojans did it in electric fashion, winning three tiebreaker sets.
After falling to Wahlert Catholic’s top team of Annie Elbert and Claire King in three sets on Wednesday (0-6, 6-2, 6-2), Ross and Yammanur put together a big run to get into the seventh place match.
Ross and Yammanrur picked up their first win later in the day on Wednesday, taking the 10-point tiebreaker over Heelan Catholic’s Maria Ernesti and Kate Kelly to stay alive 6-7, 6-4, 1-0.
The Trojans battled past Clarinda’s Ellie Cole and Taylin Walter in similar fashion later in the day. Fairfield survived 6-3, 2-6, 1-0 to go 2-1 on Day 1, and advance to Thursday’s action.
The Trojans fell 6-2 and 6-0 to Boone’s Kaylee Kuehl and Livi Schneider on Thursday morning, pitting them against Spencer’s Kennedy Graettinger and Brynn Merchant in the seventh-place match.
After splitting the first two sets, the Trojans were once again in a 10-point tiebreaker, but this one couldn’t be decided in just 10 points. Fairfield and Spencer went into extra points before the Trojans could claw to a 13-11 victory.
“I wasn’t ready to give up in another tiebreaker,” Yammanur said. “We had come this far, and it just didn’t sound right to lose like that.”
The team, which normally played at No. 2 doubles due to returning state qualifiers Poojita Mukadam and Natalie Steele, went on an absolute tear in the last month of the season. Ross and Yammanur advanced to state with a regional championship, won the Southeast Conference title, and then showed out on the state’s biggest days.
“The reason we’re able to just stick through it even after losing was our communication and ability to kind of hype each other up,” Ross said.
The two longtime friends weren’t able to play doubles together until this year, with Ross going to Maharishi and Yammanur being a Fairfield High School student. The two schools combined for tennis this fall, and it allowed the duo to shine.
“We go to different schools, so every single time we see each other, it’s exciting,” Ross said. “I’m excited to see her at practice, and I’m excited to play with her.”
Head Coach Travis Duncan says the two juniors made a natural team.
“They’ve been friends for a long time, so we knew going in, it was going to be those two,” Duncan said. “It just fit nicely. They worked hard, and they executed.”
In singles competition, junior Natalie Steele scooped up her second state medal of 2025. After going from second in regionals to the Top-8 in the final spring tennis season as a sophomore, Steele did the exact same thing this fall, taking eighth.
“It’s lots of fun,” Steele said. “Last year, I got so much better and this year I felt like I was playing my best tennis, and got better as the tournament went on.”
Steele narrowly missed the state quarterfinals after falling just short against North Polk’s Harika Cakinberk 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 in the opening round. After defeating Clarinda’s Layla Hargis in her first consolation battle, Steele edged Lea Patrick of Assumption 6-7, 6-4, 1-0 to clinch a spot in the Top-8.
On Thursday, Steele fell to the seventh-place match after falling against Decorah’s Kaitlyn Bjork. She faced Cakinberk again, this time losing in two sets.
“It’s an honor to come and play here,” Steele said. “You’ve got to win so many matches to play here, and you’ve got to play so many matches when you’re here.”
Steele, who had two play two sports this fall due to tennis moving into volleyball season, will be a favorite again next season. She is projected to move up to No. 1 now, with senior Poojita Mukadam wrapping up her career last week.
Mukadam narrowly missed the Top-8 herself. She too had to work through the consolation bracket after falling in three (4-6, 6-2, 6-2) to Kuemper Catholic’s Charlotte Schwabe in the opener.
Mukadam was able to sweep Pella Christian’s Ava Breems 6-2 and 6-3 in her first consolation match, but met her demise against Cakinberk, who eliminated Mukadam 7-5, 6-0.
The state singles and doubles tournament marked the end of girls tennis for 2025. The Trojans didn’t lose a team match all year until the regional final against Central DeWitt, where Fairfield narrowly missed out on this week’s team tournament. Mt. Pleasant was knocked out by Central DeWitt in the opening round.
