The Platte County boys tennis team is headed back to the MSHSAA Class 2 State Tournament for the third consecutive year after a convincing quarterfinal victory over Lebanon.
In the first recorded meeting between Platte County and Lebanon in boys tennis last week, the Pirates made a nervy quarterfinal matchup look routine. They did so while throwing Lebanon an unexpected curveball.
After the Pirates’ doubles teams faced struggles in the district finals against St. Pius X, the Pirates made some adjustments that paid off, sweeping the way in doubles against Lebanon. All three of Platte County’s doubles teams featured new additions that surprised Lebanon out of the gates.
“I knew they (Lebanon) had a really strong No. 1 (singles) and a really strong No. 1 doubles,”
Platte County head coach Zach Keith said. “Beyond that, everything I heard was that it was going to be a great match. That’s exactly how it played out.”
Platte County junior Lincoln Keith won his doubles match, where he played alongside Wyatt Beeson.
Platte County was confident at No. 2 and 3 doubles, based on the little information the Pirates had. Jacoby Keith moved up to join Jackson Kluck to form a mismatch on their opposition at No. 2 doubles, while Wyatt Beeson joined Lincoln Keith to create another athletic pairing at No. 3 doubles.
The greatest uncertainty for the Pirates came at No. 1 doubles, where Owen Behne moved up to join Mitchel McBratney. McBratney had previously played alongside Behne at a tournament earlier in the season, and while they didn’t play well in that tournament, Keith saw the potential for them to play well.
“A lot of it was we really liked our matchups at No. 2 and 3 doubles,” Keith said. “I just felt really good about 2 and 3 (doubles), and that 1 could be like the wild card, the make-something-happen doubles team, and they did.”
McBratney and Behne never trailed as they came out of the gate shot with a 4-1 lead. Things got a little dicey as the match went on, with Lebanon battling to make it 6-5, but the Pirates closed it out well as Behne served to deliver Platte County of the 8-5 at No. 1 doubles.
As predicted, Jacoby Keith and Kluck’s performance at No. 2 doubles proved to be a mismatch. They never trailed, either, before running away with the 8-2 victory.
Taking a 3-0 lead, Platte County knew they were in for a battle heading into the five singles matchups. That is exactly what they got after a re-energized Lebanon side gave Platte County some close matches.
Lebanon’s only score of the quarterfinal came at No. 1 singles, where McBratney fell 6-1, 6-1.
Jacoby Keith brought the Pirates a major step closer to a Final Four berth, overcoming early deficits in both sets to win his No. 5 singles match 6-4, 6-2. He remained within a point in both sets before winning the final three games of the first set, and taking the final five games of the second set to give the Pirates a 4-1 advantage.
Just like in the district championship, Beeson closed out another postseason victory. Beeson edged out the first set 6-4 before officially booking Platte County’s trip to Springfield by serving to take the second set 6-2 to secure the Pirates’ quarterfinal 5-1 victory.
Platte County remained in good shape with Kluck leading by a set after overcoming a 5-2 deficit at No. 2 singles, and Hokanson closing in on a victory at No. 6 singles after winning a first-set tiebreaker 7-3. Behne was floating in dangerous territory after losing his first set and trailed by a game early in the second set before his match was halted alongside the matches for Kluck and Hokanson.
“It feels really great because we definitely worked really hard for this,” Jacoby Keith said. “Like my dad said in our team huddle, a couple of months ago, I think we would have gotten killed by these guys. It’s nice seeing all the hard work paying off.”
Jacoby Keith has won every match of his postseason campaign for Platte County.
Jacoby Keith has consistently been a positive contributor to the varsity team this year, particularly without dropping any matches in Platte County’s postseason run. The junior standout’s sophomore brother, Lincoln Keith, has also provided another option in doubles, where he has won all three postseason matches.
“They both would tell you that tennis is not their main sport,” Zach Keith said. “They have both really fallen in love with the game this season. They love the guys on the team. It’s a great environment for both of them, so I’m really proud and happy for them.”
After proving themselves at the junior varsity level under coaches Scott Blakely and Ron Keith, their grandfather, the Keith brothers earned pivotal varsity spots playing for their father this season.
“It’s really amazing,” Jacoby Keith said. “Every single match, I feel like there’s so many people here to watch me. I get all my family’s support and getting to play with my brother, and the chemistry that we have is really fun.”
Platte County now returns to the Class 2 State Tournament for the third consecutive season. They finished fourth last year, but were state runners-up in 2024.
The Pirates, who have tied a program record with 16 wins, will play for a state championship on May 22. They open with a semifinal matchup against Father Tolton at 9 a.m. The winner advances to the championship match at 3 p.m. against Ladue or Warrensburg.
Ladue, who has won four state titles, enters Springfield as the heavy favorite to win a first title since 2023. The Pirates could also get a rematch of last year’s semifinal defeat to Warrensburg.
“You’re going to get a three-way battle for whose the best non-Ladue team there,” Zach Keith said. “It will be a big challenge no matter who we play.”