Highland Park is hopeful 2026 is the year the Scots return to the pinnacle of Texas tennis.
And with good reason.
HP entered the year ranked No. 2 in the state in Class 5A in the Texas Tennis Coaches Association preseason poll after bowing out to eventual state champion Frisco Centennial in the regional quarterfinals a year ago.
It was the third consecutive state title for the Titans. Those victories came after HP won 5A state titles in six straight years from 2015-2021.
Centennial does not come in as the state’s No. 1 team this year, however, as that honor has been bestowed upon Frisco Independence — which also resides in Region II alongside the Scots and Titans.
“We’re in the toughest region in the state,” said Vance Sharp, HP head coach. “When you look at the preseason rankings, seven of the top 10 are in our region. It’s going to be a very tough playoff draw, but I think we have as good of a shot as anyone coming out.”
HP’s optimism starts with its key returnees, headlined by junior Steven Hu, who claimed the program’s first state title in 20 years alongside Collier Muenker in boys doubles last spring.
With Muenker now graduated, Hu has spent much of the early portion of the fall teamed up with senior captain Roberto Newell-Eyl.
On the girls side, senior Eoin Burgess has gotten out to a strong start, while HP has also benefitted from the return of junior Lillian Zhu — who missed last season due to an ACL injury suffered at the start of the campaign.
It’s HP’s youth movement, however, that has it in position to contend for postseason championships.
“We had nine freshmen make varsity this season,” Sharp said. “It’s a great, young class and I feel like even though we graduated a lot from last year, we’ve really reloaded.”
Among the freshmen boys making instant impacts thus far are Carson Liu, who has slotted into the No. 3 boys singles spot, and Barrett Benson, while girls include Taylor Stephens, Aria Cakaric, and Briley Brown.
Thus far, HP has gotten out to a 5-2 start with its only slip ups coming against ranked 6A opponents in Coppell (No.8) and Flower Mound (No. 14).
Victories include District 12-5A wins over Grapevine (15-4), R.L. Turner (19-0), Birdville (19-0), and Colleyville Heritage (17-2). HP also posted a shutout non-district win over Frisco Reedy.
Reedy entered the season No. 11 in 5A and beat HP two years ago, 11-8, while Heritage came in at No. 20 in the preseason poll.
“When you look at the progress we made against a team like Reedy over the past couple of years, that shows just how far we’ve come,” Sharp said. “That was a huge win for us.”
The Scots continue in district through September before the district tournament slated for Oct. 5 at a location to be determined.
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