Creighton Prep’s tennis team is one that has experienced recent dominance. Since 2000, Prep has won 12 state titles in tennis, including the past two. The team returns four of the six players that partook in the 2015 state tournament in seniors Thomas Kennedy and Alex King, and juniors Ryan McNamara and Brett Slezak. They will not set their sights any lower than another state championship.

In order to achieve these high goals, the tennis players have been training year-round, so they can stay in top form for when the season rolls around.

“A lot of the preparation for the season starts in the winter and goes through the summer. The top six players that are going to play at state have been playing at tournaments throughout the summer,” said senior Maxim Oleynikov of the extensive work the tennis players put in during the summer.

Oleynikov and junior Brian O’Flanagan attended a two-week training program at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. to improve their abilities before the upcoming season.

“There is not official conditioning, but all these guys play year-round, and all of them are doing conditioning year-round. They’re doing clinics, they’re doing conditioning, they’re playing in tournaments, so all of these guys play lots and lots of tennis throughout the year,” said head coach Mike Higgins of his players’ work ethic.

Prep played in its first dual this past Thursday, where they began the season with a bang, winning all nine matches against Bellevue West. They will enter their first tournament this Saturday against Lincoln Southwest, Millard North and Lincoln Southeast, a tournament which, according to Higgins, will be sure to test Prep’s resolve, as each of those schools are seen as contenders for the state title.