MASCOUTAH — Alton rebounded from a narrow loss to Belleville West to defeat Belleville East 4-1 on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026, in the Southwestern Conference tournament, securing fifth place behind four victories from its senior lineup.
The win came a day after Alton lost 3-2 to Belleville West on Friday, missing a chance to reach the semifinals and guarantee a top-four finish. Alton finished with a 6-5 conference record, including the tournament.
“I was concerned there would be some carryover Saturday,” Alton coach Jesse Macias said. “We lost an emotional close one Friday, then we had to get up really early Saturday and drive to Mascoutah and play another tough conference opponent.”
Alton won both singles matches and two of the three doubles matches against Belleville East.
At No. 1 singles, senior Madyson Henkhaus defeated Amelia Wohlgemuth 6-1, 7-5 to clinch the team victory. Senior Vail Schwaab beat Tiara Lawrence 6-1, 6-1 at No. 2 singles.
“Maddy and Vail gutted out nice wins,” Macias said. “Maddy had the clinching match and that is always cool.”
At No. 1 doubles, seniors Genna Roark and McKenna Dondanville rallied to defeat Khloe Phillips-Dancy and Randi Bleich 4-6, 6-4, 10-8. The Alton pair trailed 8-6 in the third-set tiebreaker before winning against a team that had beaten them earlier in the season.
“It is always nice to flip scores around in conference,” Macias said. “Number one singles and doubles are just battle after battle. That was a huge win.”
Seniors Caroline Cannon and Laila Kiger overcame an early 3-0 deficit at No. 3 doubles to beat Isabella Wolters and Janiya Stamps 6-3, 6-1.
Belleville East earned its victory at No. 2 doubles, where Bella Hataway and Blair Bisso defeated Alton seniors Lydia Schrumpf and Ellie Hanebutt 6-4, 6-3.
Macias credited his seniors with helping the team recover from Friday’s loss and adjust during Saturday’s matches.
“Our singles and doubles players go out in every match with a plan, and as seniors they know what adjustments to make,” Macias said. “More importantly, they are mentally and emotionally tough enough to commit to those adjustments.”
“Our team is gritty and loves to compete; that has been our recipe for success,” he said. “I am proud of all our varsity because this has been one of our better years, and we have had some good ones lately. I attribute a lot of it to our senior leadership and their attitudes and effort.”
