Sisterly bond helps Knoch girls tennis grow into WPIAL powerhouse

By: Michael Love
Monday, October 4, 2021 | 8:15 PM

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When Katie and Nance Conlon, coaches of the Highlands and Knoch girls tennis teams, respectively, met for their teams’ Section 3-AA match last week, daughter and mother had another chance to reconnect their love of the game and reminisce about how it has played such a strong part in their lives.

Family has been integral in the overall development of the Knoch program over the past decade with multiple Conlons, Bauers, Grebs and Santoras helping fuel the WPIAL tennis power.

On Monday, the team wrapped up its sixth straight section championship — it hasn’t lost a section match since 2015 — and soon will attempt to defend last year’s WPIAL team championship with eyes also on a return to states.

Nance Conlon is in her ninth year at Knoch. Katie Conlon, a 2012 graduate with twin sister Abby, is in her second year at Highlands.

“My mother was so influential in all our tennis plans,” said Katie, who saw younger sisters Molly, a 2016 Knoch graduate, and Libby (2020), also impact the program. “She started playing competitive tennis around the same time Abby and I did, about 20 years ago when we were 7 or 8 years old.”

“It was truly a sport we grew to love as a family. It was really cool to see our younger sisters follow in those footsteps. They were really good players in the Knoch program and had a big hand in helping get the program to where it is today.”

Katie and Abby were four-year competitors with the Knights and were the top singles players on the team as seniors in 2011.

That year, Abby and Katie were on opposite doubles teams that met to decide the WPIAL Section 3-AA title.

Katie and Peggy Kanterman, the No. 1 seed, topped Abby and Alyssa King, 6-1, 3-6, 6-4, to win the championship.

Katie went to college at Ohio University and got her coaching start at nearby Athens High School.

“My mom was super influential when I started coaching, and we talked a lot about that aspect of the game,” Katie said. “Now, being in the same section, it’s a lot of fun to call her and talk about a match and what issues we face. She’s seen the same teams on the same courts. Everyone in tennis in Western Pennsylvania seems to know my mother.”

There was a Conlon sister in the Knoch lineup every year from 2008-19.

Molly came in as a freshman in 2012 and established herself as the team’s top singles player during a time when the Knights were playing in Class AAA with section powers North Allegheny, Pine-Richland and Hampton.

Knoch returned to Class AA in 2016. Libby Conlon was a member, as a freshman, of the team that started the current section-title streak, and she was a part of three straight WPIAL runner-up squads.

She now is a sophomore starter on the women’s team at Washington & Jefferson.

“When we bumped back down to Class AA in 2016, we felt we were where we should be and where we could compete,” Nance Conlon said. “That was a year with a lot of big accomplishments. It was an important start and a foundation to what we have now.”

Elle Santora also was a freshman at Knoch in 2016 before moving on to Shady Side Academy. Individually, she finished as the WPIAL Class AA runner-up and made the state quarterfinals.

She now plays club tennis at Furman in South Carolina.

Knoch sophomore Ava Santora, like her big sister, had her own freshman success with Knoch last year as a key doubles player for the WPIAL champs.

“I’ve played since I can remember. I was kind of born into a strong tennis family,” Ava Santora said. “Elle put so much into tennis, and she was so influential on my development.”

“Her dedication showed in all that she did. I know that I have to work hard to get to where I want to be for myself and the team.”

Laura Greb, a freshman at Dayton, came along in the fall of 2017 and started what would become a record-setting run of four straight WPIAL Class AA singles titles.

Her tennis influence shows in twin sisters Emily and Lindsay Greb, who hit the ground running for the Knights as freshmen last year.

Emily Greb finished fourth in the recent WPIAL Class AA singles tournament after taking third last year.

“Laura has always motivated us and pushed us to do better and better each time we play,” said Emily Greb, who, along with Lindsay, started playing at age 7.

“She was already playing at a high level, and it encouraged us to play as much as she did. She set an example for me, my sister and a lot of other players to follow.”

Emily said she’s grateful to be able to share these experiences with Lindsay. The sister duo is the No. 1 seed for the WPIAL Class AA doubles tournament that begins Wednesday at Bethel Park.

“It’s nice to have someone to relate to on the court, and we’re also doubles partners outside of high school tennis,” Emily Greb said. “We’re always communicating and working together to win. We’re always supporting each other off the court, too.”

The Bauer sisters, Brooke and Ally, forged an even stronger bond than had already been established growing up when they teamed to claim last year’s WPIAL Class AA doubles title and finish as state runners-up.

“It was the best feeling to win the (WPIAL doubles) title with her, and then experience winning the WPIAL and state (team) titles together with everyone else,” said Ally Bauer, a junior who finished as this year’s WPIAL Class AA singles runner-up Sept. 24. She and Libby Conlon brought home WPIAL doubles gold together in 2019.

“It was Brooke’s senior year, and it was her last chance, so it was really cool to be a part of that with her. We definitely understood each other, winning or losing a match and the feelings we had after. Even though we weren’t playing the same people, we still felt that connection of support. Me getting to watch her go through the stages of development a little sooner helped me when it was my time to go through those same things.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Knoch