The Bearcat tennis team is on the hunt for more hardware.
Kearney High were the state runners-up a year ago, finishing second to a historic Lincoln East team, winning the first team trophy since 1987.
Kearney lost seniors from last year's team, but players coming up from a solid outing at the JV level and putting in work over the offseason should keep the foundation strong.
"We've been very successful, but to finally get over that hump and bring home a trophy at state that was pretty exciting," Kearney high tennis coach Troy Saulsbury said. "These guys have high expectations for themselves, and they're sharing that with the team too and they're really working hard. I'm excited to see what they can accomplish,"
Leading the Bearcats back will be Asher Saulsbury, the son of coach Troy Saulsbury.
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Asher was the state runner-up a year ago, falling in the final to Lincoln East's Hunter Nelson.
Nelson was the only player to beat Asher a year ago, and Asher was the only player to take a set from Nelson in his dominant freshman year.
Now, the slate is wiped clean, with Asher Saulsbury and Nelson leading a deep field of challengers in Class A.
"There's a little added pressure because no you have a little bit of a target on your back," Troy Saulsbury said. "The key is managing that and playing to his potential. He's really added some ability to attack and be aggressive, because he's going to need to force the point sometimes against the top guys,"
Kearney High has not had a boys singles champion since Casey Nelson in 2000.
The team is far from just Asher Saulsbury. Drew Welch, part of the No. 2 doubles team a year ago, is back, and will fill the top doubles role this season. Welch, alongside the Asher Saulsbury, are the only returners with state experience.
Experience is not completely lacking. Two seniors Kyler Nichols and Ayden Nelson will help lead the charge in competing for spots.
The team also has an extensive amount of junior letterwinners, including Kyler Eklund, Brayden Kohtz and Evan Shaffer.
"They want to continue we started last year," Troy Saulsbury said. "The good thing is we've got a lot of depth, so they're going to be competing for spots, which helps get them ready for the first few matches,"
The team opens the year with a meet against McCook, the top team in Class B, a formidable gauge to where the team is at.
The Kearney High doubles invite is also an important meet to watch, with top team coming to the home site of the Bearcats.
The Papio Invite is what Troy Saulsbury calls it a "small state tournament" with 24 teams competing.
"They're all important, you don't want to stub your toe at any of them," Troy Saulsbury said. "But those are probably three of the bigger ones we have circled."
