Division 3 tennis finalist Chanda Cook glances up at the White Bear Lake Lifetime tennis championship plaque board Sunday, Feb. 23. Cook and her partner, Donna Sommerfeldt, played a close call championship match against a mother daughter duo to fight for a spot on the plaque.

White Bear moms prepare for tennis championship

Chanda Cook and Dona Sommerfeldt strategized and prepped for their last match of the White Bear Lake Lifetime club tournament.

By Makenna Cook | Clarion News Reporter

Division three tennis partners Chanda Cook and Donna Sommerfeldt met up an hour before their championship match at the White Bear Lake Lifetime Fitness before competing to put their name on the club plaque. Sommerfeldt’s eighth-grade son, Jack, who plays on the Mahtomedi High School varsity tennis team, showed up to all his mom’s matches leading up to the championship. The pair ended up losing to mother-daughter duo Peggy and Jodi Van De Riet 6–4, 7–6.

“They’ve got great chemistry and they’re a really great pair,” Cook said. “My goal was just to not get a bagel.”

White Bear Lake Lifetime tennis player Chanda Cook laces up her tennis shoes an hour before her match Sunday, Feb. 23. She played a long side partner, Donna Sommerfeldt, in a close championship match ending with 4–6 6–7. “They’ve got great chemistry and they’re a really great pair,” Cook said. “My goal was just to not get a bagel.”

Double’s tennis players Chanda Cook and Donna Sommerfeldt stand alongside Sommerfeldt’s son, Jack, watching video footage of their last match at White Bear Lake Lifetime Sunday Feb. 23. Jack Sommerfeldt has been playing for the Mahtomedi varsity tennis team for the past two years and watched his mom in every game she played in this tournament. During their Saturday match he took notes and video footage to help Sommerfeldt and Cook strategize. “Peggy may look old on the outside but on the inside she’s a twenty-year-old.” Jack Sommefeldt said.

Double’s tennis players Donna Sommerfeldt and Chanda Cook discuss their opponent’s tennis game and their strategies for winning their upcoming match. The duo ended up losing their match 4–6 6–7 to mother daughter duo Jodi and Peggy Van De Riet.

White Bear Lake Lifetime tennis club members and pros fight to win their final matches of the last day of the tournament. Winners of the championship matches for each division earn a place on the tennis championship plaque board that sits near the entrance to the tennis courts.