Last year, Lauren Bellinger and Sarah Stein became the second duo from the Dublin Jerome High School girls tennis team to reach the doubles final of the Division I state tournament, where they lost to Cincinnati Ursuline Academy’s Komal Safdar and Mehvish Safdar 6-4, 6-2.

When Bellinger and Stein compete in the state tournament Friday and Saturday, Oct. 21 and 22, at Ohio State, they will attempt to become the third Jerome doubles team to capture a state title. Sisters Caroline and Elizabeth Farrar won the Division II doubles championship in 2004 and Jessica Easdale and Kathryn Farrar won the Division I title in 2007.

“Our tradition of winning state titles in doubles is something we take great pride in, and we want to add to what past Dublin Jerome teams have accomplished,” Bellinger said. “There’s going to be some pressure on us because of how far we made it last year. But it shouldn’t be as nerve-wracking to compete at state as it was last year because Sarah and I have been in that position before and we know what to expect.”

Bellinger said the key will be playing aggressively at the net.

“We need to get to the net and put shots away because that’s what we do best together,” Bellinger said. “We need to make sure we execute our shots and put our first serves and first returns away, too.”

The Jerome duo went 4-0 in the district tournament Oct. 14 and 15 at Hilliard Davidson to win its second consecutive district title.

Bellinger and Stein opened with a 7-5, 6-1 win over Watterson’s Christie Jenkins and Sarah Gilbert before beating Worthington Kilbourne’s Kelly Jiang and Claire Metka 6-2, 6-3 in a state qualifier.

They defeated Hilliard Bradley’s Ashley Thai and Lauren Thai 6-3, 6-3 in a semifinal and beat Watterson’s Lauren Ghidotti and Katie Shepherd 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7-3) in the final.

“The wind was awful and the playing conditions were horrid on the second day,” Bellinger said. “We did a good job of setting up each other’s shots and we did a good job of closing to the net and putting away shots. In the final we did a good job of keeping our composure when we fell behind 5-4, and we played great in the tiebreaker.”

Jerome freshman Emma Stein went 3-1 and placed second at singles.

The top four finishers in singles and doubles qualified for state.

Stein opened with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Teays Valley’s Adrien Leatherwood before beating Olentangy Liberty’s Sydney Power 6-3, 6-4 in a state qualifier.

Stein defeated New Albany’s Cristina DiLorenzo 6-4, 6-7 (7-4), 6-4 in a semifinal and lost to Olentangy Orange’s Anna Sanford 6-1, 6-3 in the final.

“I’m really happy that I’m going to state,” Emma Stein said. “We had a really good match (in the semifinal) but it was so windy that it was hard to do much. I just had to play really smart tennis. Sanford hits the ball hard and she just has more experience than me, but I played OK (in the final).”

Emma Stein said she doesn’t feel any pressure heading into her state tournament debut.

“I just want to do the best I can because I’ve already accomplished my goal by getting there,” she said. “I need my backhand and serve to work for me to be competitive at state.”

Coffman junior Ash Thenappan went 2-2 and placed fourth in the district tournament to qualify for state for the first time.

Thenappan opened with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Upper Arlington’s Beniva Ganther before defeating Watterson’s Courtney Brown 7-6, 7-5 in a state qualifier.

“This year, my big goal was to go to state and I’m super excited to make it,” Thenappan said. “I’m more of an offensive, aggressive player and the wind really threw me off my game. Courtney Brown played really well against me, but I pulled it off at the key moments.”

Thenappan lost to Sanford 6-1, 6-1 in a semifinal and to DiLorenzo 6-0, 6-1 in the consolation final.

“Sanford’s a five-star player,” Coffman coach Brett Hundertpfund said. “There were 40-mile gusts of wind and Sanford still didn’t miss much. (DiLorenzo) hits the ball with a heavy topspin, which is perfect for the crazy conditions the girls had to play in. But Ash played well overall and is thrilled to be going to state for the first time.”

Thenappan knows it will be difficult to win matches at state, but she hasn’t ruled out the possibility.

“Everyone who is playing at this level has proven they have the strokes to make it this far, so the key thing for me is to stay focused and keep my mental game together,” Thenappan said.