Platte County’s state playoff run ends with historic runnerup finish

Any disappointment with a runnerup finish remained well hidden — and for good reason.

Platte County’s first-ever trip to the Class 2 MSHSAA Tennis Championships as a team concluded with a 5-1 loss to small-school powerhouse MICDS on Friday afternoon at Cooper Tennis Complex in Springfield. The Rams won a 17th state title in dominant fashion. Yet, the Pirates proudly paraded around and displayed the second-place trophy, even taking the physical representation of the program’s new standard of excellence to the counter and the tables while ordering and enjoying the postgame meal at Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers.

Seven players — four seniors — made contributions and staked claim to playing a part in producing Platte County’s best season to this point in the program’s history, which started in 2009.

“It just makes me so happy. It’s a dream come true,” Platte County senior No. 1 Gavin Nichols said. “Everything worked out the way we hoped it would. I’m really proud of my whole team.”

Making a second straight playoff appearance, Platte County (16-4) started the day with a competitive and well-earned 5-1 victory over Branson in a semifinal matchup. The dual between the two public schools to make the final four lasted nearly three hours.

MICDS quickly dispatched Westminster Christian with a 5-0 shutout then awaited the championship dual opponent.

Nichols and senior Aaron Vaughan combined for an 8-5 victory at No. 1 doubles, but Platte County went into singles down 2-1. MICDS junior No. 2 Arjun Puri, freshman No. 4 Max Padratzik and senior No. 5 Louis Niemeyer all secured 6-0, 6-0 victories to clinch the victory.

At No. 1 singles, Nichols won the opening set 7-5, but Platte County also trailed in the other two matches that did not finish, as well.

“Every guy on our team — with the exception of (Gavin) — was playing against the best player they’ve ever played in their entire life,” Platte County coach Zach Keith said. “But our guys did what they did all year: they competed. I am so proud of them.”

Platte County’s back-to-back playoff appearances are the first ones in program history. Last year, the Pirates’ season ended with a quarterfinal loss to Helias and the graduation of four starters but the second ends with the first state trophy.

A four-time Class 2 District 8 champion in singles, Nichols anchored the lineup and ended up spending three-plus years in the No. 1 singles spot for Platte County, but junior Jack Bralley moved up from No. 4 to No. 2, while junior Hayden Cook (No. 3) and seniors Vaughan (No. 4) and Daniel Bunge (No. 5) made significant jumps after playing junior varsity in 2023. Uniquely, the Pirates used junior Paul Havemeier at No. 6 singles, while senior Quentin Miller teamed with Bunge at No. 3 doubles.

The combination gelled from the beginning, and Platte County’s only losses during the regular season came to Class 3 Park Hill, Park Hill South and Central (St. Joseph). The strong regular season also included a 7-2 victory over the Pirates’ eventual state semifinal opponent a day before winning the Branson Doubles Invitational tournament title.

“It’s impossible to describe what a team means to you in a way that anyone who’s not a part of it would understand,” Keith said. “And maybe that’s the beauty of being a part of a group like this.”

In the rematch with a retooled Branson lineup, Platte County came out of a lengthy doubles portion of the dual with a 2-1 lead thanks to wins from Nichols and Vaughan (8-4 at No. 1) and Bralley and Cook (8-6 at No. 2), while Bunge and Miller nearly completed the sweep but dropped a 9-7 matchup at No. 3.

Branson led in only one of the six singles matches.

Havemeier dominated at No. 6 in a 6-2, 6-0 victory, while Bralley played steady in a 6-4, 6-3 win at No. 2. Vaughan ended up with the clincher, a 6-4, 5-7, 10-2 tiebreaker triumph that put Platte County into the state championship match — an almost unthinkable position for a team that didn’t have courts or home duals for the majority of its history.

“Our semifinal match against Branson was intense, competitive, and featured all of the ups and downs that a match of that magnitude should,” Keith said. “If you want a picture of what it looks like for a bunch of guys in an individual sport to fight for each other as a team, that was the dual to watch. We played great, played for each other, and pulled out an incredible win.”

MICDS, which finished second in Class 1 but bumped up due to the private school success multiplier, entered as the heavy favorite on tradition and experience alone.

Yet, Platte County entered with more individual state qualifiers and medalists. Puri and Padratzik placed third in doubles for Class 2, while Nichols (seventh in singles) and Bralley and Cook (eighth in doubles) finished top-eight for the Pirates.

The run of success for Platte County in the four years since the state split the sport into three classes for the postseason coincides with Nichols’ entrance to the program, but in addition to his four district titles, three state medals and earned status as far and away the best player in program history, the Pirates have sent a doubles team to state each of the past three years and now has back-to-back podium finishes in those brackets, as well. Prior to this stretch, the Pirates’ only had one other individual qualifier — the doubles team of Ethan Savage and Aaron Stout back in 2010.

Under Keith’s guidance, Platte County slowly built a tradition based on work ethic and tenacity, and the crowning moment to this point came with longtime assistant (official and volunteer) Anna Nutt, former player Scotty Blakley and his father Ron Keith on the coaching staff. They all collected silver medals, as well, in addition to the trophy that goes in the school’s display case as the permanent reminder of a memorable, breakthrough season.

“At the end of the day, the second-place state trophy is just a physical reminder of the shared memories I’ll have with a group of players and coaches who have made an indescribable impact on my life. I will be telling stories about this team for a long time,” Keith said.