Platte County returns so much experience that the Joplin Interstate Championships offered the perfect chance to test the depth while also turning in strong results. The Pirates went 4-2 across two days of action and placed third in the Challengers Bracket 1 with the top eight players all contributing.
As opposed to the traditional format of six singles and three doubles matches, the tournament format consisted of best-of-five duals. Players were limited to one match — either singles or doubles — in the two-day competition held this past weekend at Joplin High School.
Platte County second-year head coach Scott Blakley opted to value consistency over loading up singles. The Pirates went 2-1 in pool duals and then lost a semifinal in the second tier of bracket play before beating Belleville East (Illinois) 4-1 in the third-place match.
There were 32 teams total in the field.
“I definitely experimented a little bit with this lineup and tried to keep my doubles teams together,” Blakley said. “It worked for the most part. We looked pretty strong in doubles.”
Platte County lost just two out of 12 total doubles matches across Friday and Saturday. Seven of the eight players used in the various lineups played varsity at some point last season with seniors Ellie Kaser and Macy Doll plus junior Macie Keith all having played multiple years at the varsity level.
In Friday’s opener, Platte County routed Lee’s Summit West 4-1 to open the season with a win despite putting strength in doubles. Doll (No. 2 singles) and senior Addison Fleming (No. 3) singles were both winners. Fleming made her return to action after missing most of last season with a dislocated knee cap suffered in a September dual.
The No. 1 duo of Kaser and Keith and juniors Katelyn Newberry and Jayne Muir provided a sweep of doubles for Platte County. Kaser and Keith sit atop the Pirates’ lineup in singles for a second straight season after becoming the first in program history to win a doubles match at state to cap 2025.
“We really took care of business. It was a great result,” Blakley said.
With only a short break, Platte County then lost 4-1 to Branson, which played the top three players in singles. Kaser and Keith accounted for Platte County’s only win in the dual, an 8-2 triumph at No. 1 doubles.
Platte County then closed pool play late Friday with a tight 3-2 victory over Liberty’s JV, which included a pair of players from the Blue Jays’ 2025 Class 3 state semifinalist that finished third overall.
Kaser and Keith both won singles matches, while Newberry and Muir’s 8-3 victory at No. 2 doubles provided the win to qualify Platte County for the Challengers Bracket 1. The dual wrap with the Route 66 Balloon Festival taking place in the background, meaning matches were being played with court lights on and hot air balloons in the background sky.
On Saturday, Platte County opened Saturday’s bracket play with a 5-0 win over Bentonville West (Arkansas) behind singles victories for Kaser (No. 1), Keith (No. 2) and freshman Shaylin Keith (No. 3), the younger sister of Macie and the only new piece in the top eight of the lineup. The Pirates then dropped the semifinal to New Heights Christian by a score of 3-2.
New Heights Christian played its top three players in singles.
At No. 1, Platte County sophomore Clare Hayter, making a jump to No. 3 from No. 6 in the normal lineup, lost 8-3 to New Heights Christian’s Layla Masena — a fifth-place singles finisher at state in Class 1 last season. Doll dropped a match 9-7 at No. 2 singles, and the doubles wins for Kaser and Macie Keith at No. 1 and Newberry and Muir at No. 2 weren’t enough to reach the championship of the bracket.
Kaser (No. 1 singles), Macie Keith (No. 2 singles) and the doubles teams of Hayter/Doll (No. 1) and Newberry/Muir (No. 2) all won for Platte County against Belleville East in the place match.
“It was a great tournament. The girls had an awesome time,” Blakley said. “We’re really excited about this team. There’s a lot of good energy going.”
Platte County 9, William Chrisman 0
The Pirates returned to action on Monday night and prevailed in the first-ever night dual in program history.
Due to forecasted heat, Platte County and William Chrisman moved the start time of the Suburban Conference White Division matchup to 7 p.m. in Independence. The head coaches and athletic directors for both teams agreed to the change with lights available for the tennis courts located at William Chrisman High School.
“Playing under the lights was a lot of fun, not something we’ll do much because most schools don’t have lights, but we really enjoyed the opportunity,” Blakley said. “We’re really thankful to William Chrisman for hosting us and allowing this to happen.”
Platte County debuted the normal lineup with Kaser (No. 1), Macie Keith (No. 2), Hayter (No. 3), Newberry (No. 4), Doll (No. 5) and Muir (No. 6) sweeping singles. As seen in Joplin, the Pirates’ doubles teams that opened the dual with victories included Kaser/Macie Keith (No. 1), Hayter/Doll (No. 2) and Newberry/Muir (No. 3).
While Platte County entered off of a tournament, William Chrisman played its first matches of the season.
“The Joplin tournament really allows for your team to feel like they’ve already played a few duals on the season because they had,” Blakley said. “We looked ready. We looked confident. We played good tennis. We were really in full control.”
Platte County has now won six straight meetings between the two teams. The Pirates’ continue a busy opening stretch of the season with Friday’s Platte County Invitational.
