HERSHEY — Though it was not the final result she wanted, Conrad Weiser senior Emma Perkins has no regrets about her historic career with the Scouts’ girls tennis program.
On Saturday, Perkins fell to defending champion Ilana Rosenthal of Wyoming Seminary 6-1, 6-0 in the PIAA Class 2A girls singles final, but afterward Perkins held her head high and was able to focus on a very successful four years.
“It was a great ride,” she said. “It meant a lot to me and I’m just really happy with how everything turned out; no regrets. It (my career) means everything. I never really realized how big high school tennis was until I experienced states for the first time, and I was like, ‘Oh, wow, this is a big deal and people actually care.’ I’m proud of where I made it to.”
Rosenthal and Perkins played several compelling rallies, but ultimately Perkins said that allowing Rosenthal to dictate the flow of the match proved to make a difference.
“I would say (I should have) attacked more, come up to the net and play to my strengths,” Perkins said. “I kind of molded to her game, which was not the thing to do, but I was happy with it overall though.”
Perkins was competing in the PIAA girls singles tournament for the first time after winning three PIAA medals in doubles. She won gold in 2020 with Alex Pancu, and silver medals with Michelle Timothy in 2021 and Victoria Waltz last year.
For Perkins, the gold medal she won with Pancu as a freshman stands out as a defining moment, along with a very successful senior season.
“Obviously, winning states with Alex my freshman year, that was awesome,” Perkins said regarding her favorite memory. “And I would say this year and the finals just because I thought that I played the best ever this year.”
Earlier in the season, Perkins defeated Hamburg’s Mia Gassert 6-1, 6-3 to join Wyomissing’s Martha Blakely (2004-07) and Wilson’s Cara Wirth (2008-11) as the only four-time Flight 1 girls singles champs in Berks girls history.
She won the District 3 Class 2A singles title with a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Lancaster Country Day’s Sienna Castelli, the second seed and defending champ, adding to the three district doubles titles she had won. She is just the third player in Berks history to win four District 3 championships, counting singles and doubles.
Perkins’ greatest accomplishment may be her contribution to the winning culture at Conrad Weiser. The Scouts advanced to the Berks final all four years with Perkins on the team and won the title her freshman and sophomore years.
“There are no words that are big enough, true enough or colorful enough to explain what Emma has meant to our program, our school and our community,” Conrad Weiser coach Ryan Knarr said. “This last run over the last few weeks was another forever moment in an indelible career that will go down not only in the history books, but in our hearts and minds, as one of the greatest players to ever play the game in Berks County.
“She’ll forever be somebody that will always be a pillar in our program. She and her running mate, Alex Pancu, are two players that helped define a generation and start a dynasty of tennis that was amazing and special for Conrad Weiser, and has set the tone for years to come.”
Moving forward, Perkins plans to continue playing tennis, but remains undecided on her future plans after graduation. Regardless of what she decides to do, tennis seems to be a fixture and Knarr is confident that she will continue to shine.
“I’ll obviously be playing tennis in college, I just need to figure out where,” Perkins said. “Tennis will always be a part of my life.”
“We always talk about our program being process oriented, and it’s no different with Emma and her future goals and aspirations,” Knarr said. “Her best tennis is still ahead of her. There’s so much more that she’s going to do in college and beyond that we’re all excited to see, to cheer on and to just be part of in any way we can because she’s always a part of who we are and what we do here with our (Conrad) Weiser tennis family.”
Source: Berkshire mont