West Iron tennis chases third straight U.P. title amid tough stretch

West Iron County spent the final week of its boys tennis season trying to protect a run that had already produced back-to-back Upper Peninsula Division 2 championships, and the margin for a third straight title looked narrow again. The Wykons had edged Iron Mountain by one point in 2024, 14-13, then won the 2025 finals with 17 points after finishing outside the top two in 2022 and 2023. The 2026 Upper Peninsula Division 2 finals were set for May 27 at Kingsford High School, giving the program one more chance to prove its resurgence was no fluke.

The stretch leading up to that meet showed both the ceiling and the vulnerability of this West Iron team. The Wykons blanked Gwinn 8-0 on May 7 and Ishpeming 8-0 on May 11, results that reinforced their place among the Upper Peninsula’s elite. But the schedule turned tougher on May 14, when West Iron fell 6-2 to Gladstone while missing several players because of a school event. Joel McWethy and Carson Aldegarie delivered the No. 2 doubles win, and Jaxson Leonoff and Jaden Wallachlaeger added the other point at No. 3 doubles. The loss also gave junior varsity players valuable court time in a season where every match mattered.

Two days later, the Wykons went to the Negaunee Invitational and faced several Division 1 schools, a level of competition that did not produce many victories but did sharpen the roster. Jim Anderson said he was pleased with Nathan Camps at No. 3 singles and with Aidyn Zimmerman and Cayden Holm at No. 3 doubles. That same pair kept producing when West Iron traveled to Westwood on May 18, where the Wykons dropped a 5-3 match. Dominick Brunswick won at No. 1 singles, and Zimmerman and Holm again turned in a solid effort.

West Iron closed that stretch by placing fourth at the Great Northern Conference Tennis Tournament on May 19, a finish Anderson said did not match the quality of the team’s play across all flights. Leonoff and Wallachlaeger, both freshmen, had finished in the top three at the previous three invitationals, a sign that West Iron was getting points from the bottom of the lineup as well as the top. With the finals at Kingsford High School, the late-season test had become clear: the Wykons would need depth, doubles consistency and the kind of mental resilience Anderson said separates good stretches from championship runs.