Waukee Northwest Boys Tennis Defends State Title

The Northwest High School boys tennis team claimed the 2025 state team title Wednesday, defeating Cedar Prairie, 5-1.

As the tournament’s No. 1 seed, the Wolves opened with a 5-0 win over No. 8 Dowling Catholic. In the semifinals, they continued their dominant run with another 5-0 victory, this time over No. 4 Iowa City West.

In the championship match, Northwest earned singles wins from juniors Vivek Kothari, Maarten Beekhuis and Miles Steffensmeier, as well as freshman Vincent Flynn, putting the team one win away from the title.

In a rematch of both state singles semifinals, senior Jake Nelson faced individual champion Anthony Schulte of Cedar Rapids Prairie, while senior Kellen Croatt took on runner-up Dylan Schulte. Nelson avenged his earlier semifinal loss, defeating Anthony Schulte 7-6 (8), 6-4 to clinch the team championship.

It marks the second straight state team title for Northwest boys tennis and the program’s fourth top-three finish in four years. The Wolves were state runner-up in 2023 and placed third in 2022.