Former Cedar Rapids Washington state champion Katelynn Kock (left) shakes hands with former Wichita State player Ting-Ya Hsu after Kock won the Baird Iowa Open women’s open singles tournament, 6-2, 6-4 at Veterans Memorial Tennis Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Sunday, July 26, 2026.
CEDAR RAPIDS — After her breakthrough season, Kaitlynn Kock appears primed for the encore.
The former Cedar Rapids Washington state tennis champion and rising junior at the University of Nebraska Omaha – fresh off a sophomore season in which she set a pair of program records for the Mavericks’ women’s tennis program – returned home to Cedar Rapids to compete in the Baird Iowa Open tennis tournament for the first time.
If her performance this week was any indication, a big junior campaign could be imminent.
“I definitely want to play at the 1-spot in singles and 1-spot in doubles again,” Kock said after defeating former Wichita State player Ting Ya-Hsu, 6-2, 6-4 for the women’s open singles title Sunday at Veterans Memorial Tennis Center. “I‘d like to try and get Player of the Year in Summitt League and, of course, help my team get to NCAAs.”
Former Cedar Rapids Washington state champion and rising Nebraska Omaha junior Katelynn Kock smiles after winning the Baird Iowa Open women’s open singles tournament at Veterans Memorial Tennis Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Sunday, July 26, 2026.
At Cedar Rapids Washington, Kock won state doubles as a sophomore in 2022 and capped her prep career with the 2024 state singles title. After a year of adjusting to college tennis, Kock rewrote the Nebraska Omaha women’s tennis record book as a sophomore by setting the program record for wins at No. 3 singles and – alongside doubles partner Nina Wiese – eclipsed the record for wins and achieved a national ranking at No. 1 doubles.
“That was a big accomplishment for me,” Kock said. “I’m really looking to keep raising the ceiling this season.”
The open singles championship plaque was not the only prize awarded to Kock this weekend. She also teamed with three-time state singles champion and rising Cedar Rapids Xavier senior Gabi Fleming to win the women’s open doubles crown and brought Nebraska Omaha men’s tennis player Pavan Uppu along to help win the mixed doubles bracket on Friday against Fleming and 2025 Cedar Rapids Prairie state singles champion Anthony Schulte.
“It was awesome,” Kock said. “We have actually won our last three mixed doubles tournaments, so we are undefeated for the summer.”
Kock has also competed in tournaments in North Dakota, South Dakota and Des Moines this summer. With Wiese transferring to Fresno State, Kock will be on the hunt for a new doubles partner while navigating a likely bump to the top of the Nebraska Omaha singles lineup.
“We have a pretty young team, so I am hoping to build up the young players and get them to play (No.) 1 with me,” Kock said. “Maybe have another great singles season and not just be seen as a doubles player, because that has kind of been the whole thing through my high school career and college career.”
Former Cedar Rapids Prairie state champion and rising Coe College sophomore Anthony Schulte smiles after winning the Baird Iowa Open men’s open singles tournament at Veterans Memorial Tennis Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Sunday, July 26, 2026.
COE’S SCHULTE REPEATS AS OPEN SINGLES CHAMP
After a summer filled with tennis tournament travels, Anthony Schulte relished the opportunity to sleep in his own bed.
In the process, the 2025 Cedar Rapids Prairie state singles champion and Coe College rising sophomore found the formula for victory.
“For once this weekend, I got to drive five minutes right to these courts,” Schulte said after defeating Uppu, 7-5, and repeating as men’s open singles champion. “I grew up on these courts my whole life, so I just think it’s really special to have such an event in Cedar Rapids.”
The final was completed in just one set as Uppu retired due to temperatures that had reached the upper 90s. Schulte is the first repeat Iowa Open champion in men’s open singles since Pella’s Matthew Tyler in 2011-12.
“This was actually the first tournament I won all summer,” Schulte said. “There is some really good talent out there and I wasn’t able to come through. There were a lot of close matches this summer that I lost, but I’m glad I finally turned it around this tournament.”
Saturday, Schulte and Uppu united to win the men’s open doubles title. The weekend’s success should provide a springboard for Schulte’s sophomore season at Coe, which already held plenty of promise thanks to his performance at the top of the coast singles lineup as a freshman.
“I absolutely loved it,” Schulte said. “I developed really well as a player. Coach (Eric) Rodgers and Coach (Jon) Lansing did a great job developing me as a player. I had to play the 1-spot right away, so I got put right in the fire. Learned some tough lessons, but I had some good success too.”
Those successes included a quarterfinal appearance at an Intercollegiate Tennis Association tournament in Minnesota last October and a No. 1 singles title at the American Rivers Conference tournament over the ARC Player of the Year, Luther’s Joao Benvenutti.
“That was definitely a good way to end the year,” Schulte said.
For his sophomore campaign, Schulte is eyeing a team title at the conference meet, plus a berth in the singles bracket at the NCAA Division-III national tournament.
“I don’t think I was very far off this year,” Schulte said.