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Claire Bean and Handley McAtee accomplish historic three-peat at Missouri State Tennis Tournament
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - The scene was all too familiar for doubles partners Claire Bean and Handley McAtee.
Calm and collected was their motto as McAtee, a senior at Kennett High School, found herself at the Missouri State Tennis Tournament for the fourth time in four years.
Her freshman and sophomore year, she helped the Indians win back-to-back state titles as a team. Along with winning the team tournament as a sophomore, McAtee also grabbed her first individual state title in the doubles tournament playing with her doubles partner, Bean.
Bean, a junior at Holcomb High School, found success as early as her freshmen season playing alongside McAtee. The two went on to conclude two back-to-back undefeated seasons as doubles partners and win two state championships together.
For their last ride, this season was no different.
Bean and McAtee completed their last season together undefeated once again and would three-peat as the 2024 Class 1 Doubles State Champions.
“It just feels really accomplishing and really great knowing that for my senior year we went out on a big high,” McAtee said. “I am still in shock that we did win three in a row, but that didn’t come without hard work and just pushing each other through. I think that played a big part in our success the past three years.”
In their three years together, Bean and McAtee have broken many records with a 104-0 career.
Along with their 35-0 record this season in doubles play, the two individuals also went undefeated in their singles matches.
They dominated in every match this season, only dropping one set all year in the district doubles tournament.
With their unwavering success, Bean and McAtee entered the state tournament as the favorites to win. However, they did not take their competition lightly. They knew anyone they played could snatch their hopes of a third state title.
“We knew as soon as we stepped on the courts we had to be focused,” McAtee said. “We didn’t have to be perfect but we knew we just had to make the right plays at the right time.”
According to McAtee, the most important thing for them was working together and playing through each other’s strengths.
In their first match of the tournament, Bean and McAtee played Alina Nalivayko and Autumn Thrasher from Clever.
Bean said this match was all about getting what she calls the ‘state jitters’ out of the way.
“We always get the ‘first match nerves,” Bean said. “So that first match is just getting the nerves out. Having a really good partner by my side helps. We get the first couple points out of the way and over with, then I can settle in and I am ready to go.”
They beat Clever’s doubles team 2-0 to advance to the next round against Lutheran South. Lutheran South was represented in the doubles tournament by Lillian Soetaert and Elise Hoehner.
This was the first match of the tournament where Bean and McAtee got to play outside, which they said they preferred over the indoor courts. This outdoor scene provided some comfort and familiarity while playing against Lutheran South.
After beating them 2-0, the duo faced what they said was their toughest match of the tournament in the semifinals.
“We knew that would be the toughest match going in,” Bean said. “My dad did some research going in and I watched them the day before and we knew they would be the hardest one to beat.”
They had to get past Kami Bryan and Jillian Horner of Bolivar to make it back to the championship match. Bryan and Horner also beat both of their previous competitors 2-0 before facing Bean and McAtee.
According to Bean, this match saw the team doubles pairings trading a lot of points back and forth. However, despite the challenge, The Kennett-Holcomb duo was able to pull out another 2-0 victory.
“Honestly, we were just working together really well at that point,” Bean said. “They were pretty close in the two sets and we just took it point by point and we just supported each other really well during that match.”
The last team they had to face to win their third state championship was Clayton’s Riley Zimmerman and Ellie Cohn.
After beating Zimmerman and Cohn 2-0, McAtee dedicated their third state title to everyone who supported them throughout this three year journey.
“We were really happy,” McAtee said. “We were just glad to have everybody there that watched us. All the fans really helped us pull through on that match. They’ve been so supportive and they were all so happy for us. We are thankful for our coaches who helped us throughout the tournament, they are a big part of our success so we are grateful for them and for everything that just kind of went our way.”
This accomplishment ties them for the most state titles by any doubles pairing in Missouri history. They now share this record with Kathleen and Mary Heckman from Bishop LeBlond who won three state championships in 1978, 1979 and 1980.
According to McAtee their success was a direct result of the hard work they put in over the years to get to this point.
“It takes a lot of time to be successful and accomplish what we did,” McAtee said. “We just kept practicing, for three years together. We kept up the work in the off seasons together, going and playing with other people in Jonesboro, getting lessons and going to clinics and playing with each other and always practicing even when we weren’t in season. That played a huge role in helping us get here.”
Along with the work they put in throughout their career, Bean and McAtee have grown as partners due to their friendship. It wasn’t only about winning the state tournament, more so about doing it with a friend.
Bean said their relationship off the courts has driven their success on the courts.
“I think our connection is very strong on and off the courts,” Bean said. “It’s not a thing where we only talk to each other during tennis season. Our friendship is really special to me. It worked so perfectly and she has been the best doubles partner. I don’t think this season would have been as perfect without her.”
McAtee said she is grateful for her friend from Holcomb who decided to come play tennis at Kennett.
“It really is like one of my favorite friendships,” McAtee said. “Claire choosing to play at Kennett has benefited me for tennis, but also having a friend like her has been so special to me.”