ALEXANDRIA — The Alexandria boys tennis team had plenty of close matches to remember this spring.
The Cardinals finished second in the Central Lakes Conference with a 6-2 league record, earned multiple all-conference selections and leaned on a deep lineup that gave them chances to compete in tight spots throughout the season. Overall, Alexandria was 19-5 in dual competition.
Nathan Cook and Donovan Rousu earned All-Central Lakes Conference honors for Alexandria, while Bennett Teaser, Logan Holtz and Scott Hrubes were named honorable mention.
Cook, a sophomore, finished with a 23-9 varsity record, while Rousu, a junior, went 22-11. Holtz, a senior, posted a 20-10 record. Teaser, a junior, finished 19-10, and Hrubes, also a junior, went 12-6.
For head coach Nick Jansen, the season showed the type of toughness the Cardinals needed in a year where several matches came down to the final points.
Alexandria boys tennis head coach Nick Jansen (left) has a discussion with No. 3 doubles team of Wil Spencer and Camden Kosters during a break in their match at a high school boys tennis dual on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, at Alexandria Area High School.
Blake Durham / Alexandria Echo Press
“I was really proud of just how we battled,” Jansen said. “The stakes are a little bit higher because if you don’t perform, you’re done, and everybody just wants to play one more match. This team is a great group of kids, and they just want to keep playing together and practicing together.”
That mindset showed up in the section tournament, where a tight playoff match against St. Cloud came down to Cedric Soderholm at third singles. After dropping a close first set, Soderholm battled back and helped Alexandria extend its season, one of the best examples of the team’s growth.
“He had the composure to go back to what our strategy was and then execute, especially in those pressure moments,” Jansen said. “I’m just really proud of him. He’s put a ton of work in, and he totally deserves that feeling that he got to have out there.”
“To pull off the last match of the season pretty much and win it so that we can keep going, it’s pretty fun,” Soderholm added. “Now we get to go and play another one. We have a little to work on, but we’ll clean it up.”
Alexandria’s success was not built around one spot in the lineup. Jansen pointed to Cook at second singles, Holtz and PJ Vanderheiden at second doubles, and Teaser and Hrubes at first doubles as players who helped the Cardinals handle the pressure of late-season matches, keeping the energy up around the courts as part of the Cardinals’ approach.
Alexandria’s Shawn Hinrichs hits a two-handed backhand return during the Section 8AA boys tennis playoffs on Wednesday, May 13, 2026, at Alexandria Area High School.
Blake Durham / Alexandria Echo Press
“For me, it’s really easy to bring the energy through my doubles partner, PJ Vanderheiden,” Holtz said. “We both stay really hyped up whenever we win a point, and even if we lose a point in one of the games, we still try to bring the energy back and push through it.”
That energy helped define a team Holtz said he will remember for its closeness, while Soderholm said one of his favorite memories came when Alexandria defeated Buffalo, Wayzata and Elk River by 4-3 scores on the same day, reflecting a larger theme for the Cardinals, who often had to rely on composure, mental toughness and the ability to reset after difficult points or matches.
Those three matches and what Alexandria figured out about its identity is one of the biggest lessons Jansen hopes the players took away from the season of competitiveness.
“Every guy in our lineup from top to bottom, just competing, not hanging their head and understanding that life is about working hard,” Jansen said. “Sometimes things don’t go well in a match. They don’t go well in life. It’s about how we come back and try to do things the right way.”
“I’m mainly going to remember just the good vibes that we have with this team,” Holtz added. “Everybody’s all really close and connected with each other, and also the tight matches when we come out on top.”
Blake Durham is the Sports and Outdoors Editor at the Echo Press. He joined the newspaper in September 2025 and covers various sports in Alexandria and throughout Douglas County. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire with a bachelor’s degree in communications in 2022.