WICHITA — Benn Kirmer and Layne Bieberle of Central Plains High School finished third at the Class 3-1A state tennis tournament on Saturday.
The doubles team fell to Sam McCoy and Brandon King in the semifinal match 6-2, 6-4.
“We were real happy with that finish,” Central Plains head coach Gary Bittner said. “We wanted to be in the top 4 going in, and we wanted a shot at the championship, but we didn’t make it past the team from Wichita Independent.”
In the third-place match, Kirmer and Bieberle beat Anthony Trifiletti and Grant Bellar of Conway Springs 6-1, 6-2.
“They are just such a nice tandem,” Bittner said. “You have a senior leader in Benn, and a very strong player both now and in the future in Layne.
“They played hard for each other. They communicated well, and they left their hearts out on the court.”
Both Kirmer, a senior, and Bieberle, a freshman, were named all-state tennis players.
“It was a great way to end the season,” Bittner said. “If you finish in the top 5, you get your name on the all-state tennis team, so Benn made it his senior year. It was a great experience for Layne in his freshman year.”

                                                      — Kevin Price