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Senior Lauren Lemonds took a straight set matchup with Maeve Koscielski at No. 1 singles which turned out to be the deciding match as Carmel edged Indianapolis Cathedral 3-2 for the IHSAA state championship in girls team tennis at North Central High School in Indianapolis.

It was a repeat championship for the top-ranked Carmel girls who finished 18-1 under coach Spencer Fields this season. It was their second 3-2 victory over the second-ranked Irish following a May 10 matchup between the two powerhouse squads.

Lemonds, last year's state singles champion, suffered her first loss of the season in a Friday quarterfinal matchup with Providence's Halli Trinkle eliminating her from the individual tournament. But Lemonds came back strong on Saturday taking out two tournament unbeatens herself in Brownburg's Kara Mehringer 6-0, 6-0 and Koscielski, 6-4, 6-4.

With Carmel holding on to a 2-1 edge in matches won, Cathedral's Ellie Pittman earned a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Carmel's Sydney Morris in a battle of freshmen at No. 2 singles to knot the score at 2-2. Only few minutes later, Lemonds polished off her win at No. 1 to deliver Carmel's 10th girls tennis state championship and seventh in 10 years.

The Greyhounds' No. 1 doubles player, Grace Marchese, was announced as the recipient of the mental attitude award following the match.

Maintaining a 4.20 GPA while taking a host of challenging honors, AP and IB courses, Marchese was a key contributor to the tennis program and various school projects throughtout her career.

School Principal Dr. Thomas L. Harmas said, "No one has made more of an impact on our school or tennis program than Grace. Her leadership qualities and dedication to helping others for the common good of a school culture are truly unique."

The daughter of James and Erin Marchese of Carmel, Grace plans to major in Nursing at Clemson University in the fall.

Marchese was nominated by her principal and coach and was selected by the IHSAA Executive Committee as best demonstrating excellence in mental attitude, scholarship, leadership and athletic ability during her high school career. Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance presented Carmel High School with a $1,000 scholarship in the name of Grace Marchese.