Duplicating last year’s success won’t be easy for the Bradford girls tennis team.

In 2008, the Red Devils captured their first Southeast Conference Tournament title since 1999 by the slimmest of margins. Bradford finished with 35.25 points, runner-up Racine Horlick had 35 and Tremper was third with 34.

The Trojans had won 10 of the previous 11 SEC tourneys, including eight in a row before Bradord’s victory last year.

Boasting a solid singles lineup, Bradford will be pushed by a deep and hungry Tremper squad come tournament time.

“We’re a very young team,” Bradford coach Kevin Guttormsen said. “It’s going to be tough to repeat. Tremper is very, very talented.”

Bradford has one of the top players in the state in sophomore Karyn Guttormsen.

As a freshman, Guttormsen went 27-3 and advanced to the third round of the WIAA Division-1 State Tournament.

She opened her season on Wednesday by finishing first at the Waukesha South Tournament. She easily defeated Waukesha South junior Katy Allen — last year’s State runner-up — 6-1, 6-1 in the championship match at No. 1 singles.

“In retrospect, we think we put heavy expectations on her last year, which made it really hard,” Kevin Guttormsen said about his daughter. “In reality, any of the top eight kids (in the state) can beat each other on any given day. We want to try to keep the pressure off her.

“Karyn has worked very hard in the off-season. She’s done a lot of training with her coach in Florida. She’s played all over the country. She’s been doing a lot of training. A lot of lifting. A lot of running. She’s ready to go.”

Here is a closer look at this year’s county teams:

Bradford

*Coach: Kevin Guttormsen, third season

*Last year: Finished first at the Southeast Conference Tournament and third in the WIAA Division-1 sectional.

*Top returning players: Trina Capelli, sophomore; Marissa Garretto, sophomore; Karyn Guttormsen, sophomore; Kim Jozefiak, senior; Alyssa Perugini, junior; Paige Pfarr, senior; Bryanna VanBlarcom, sophomore; Hannah Zimmerman, junior.

*Other prospects: Emily Nordloh, freshman; Megha Shah, senior; Alana Wamboldt, sophomore.

*FYI: Along, with Guttormsen, Capelli and Pfarr also have State Tournament experience. Capelli teamed up with now-graduated Abby Werwie, while Pfarr teamed up with now-graduated Brittany Lampada in doubles. “Losing Werwie and Lampada are two huge losses for us,” the Bradford coach said. “They were really solid kids who helped that team.” ... Shah, a transfer from Racine Prairie, and Wamboldt make up the No. 1 doubles team. ... The Red Devils should be tested by a tougher-than-usual schedule.

SCHEDULE

August—25—at Racine Park (Lockwood Park), 4 p.m.; 26—Whitefish Bay, 10 a.m.; 27-28—at Brookfield Central Invitational, 10 a.m.

September—1—Racine Horlick, 4 p.m.; 3—Wisconsin Lutheran, 4 p.m.; 5—at Green Bay Southwest Invitational, 9 a.m.; 8—at Muskego, 4 p.m.; 10—Oak Creek, 4 p.m.; 12—Bradford Invitational, 8 a.m.; 15—Racine Case, 4 p.m.; 17—at Franklin (Tuckaway Country Club), 4 p.m.; 22—Tremper, 4 p.m.

October—1—SEC Meet at TBA, noon; 3—SEC Meet at TBA, 8 a.m.; 5—Division-1 Bradford subsectional, 9 a.m.; 7 or 8—at Division-1 Brookfield East sectional, TBA; 15-17—at WIAA State Individual Tournament (Nielsen Stadium, Madison), TBA; 23-24—at WIAA State Team Tournament (Nielsen Stadium, Madison), TBA.

Central

*Coach: Pat Brings, second season

*Last year: Finished sixth in the Southern Lakes Conference Tournament.

*Top returning players: Angela Christenson, senior; Jessica Hansen, senior; Jordan Leslie, senior; Katie Moore, senior; Haley Peters, senior; Alyssa Rosch, senior; Emily Schulz, senior; Holly Weber, senior; Tara Zeman, senior.

*Other prospects: Keisha Harper, senior; Jennifer McElligott, junior; Amber Pfeiffer, senior.

*FYI: There are 32 players in the Central program, which is in its fourth season. ... Six of the team’s 14 seniors (Christenson, Hansen, Leslie, Schulz, Weber and Zeman) have played for four years. ... The Falcons opened the season with a pair of third-place finishes at the East Troy Quad and the Whitewater Quad. The No. 3 doubles team of Hansen and Pfeiffer took first at East Troy, while Leslie took first at Whitewater. ... Leslie (No. 1 singles) became the first Central player to qualify for the WIAA State Tournament last season. She is also the defending SLC champion.

SCHEDULE

(Home matches at Camp Wonderland)

August—18—at East Troy Quadrangular, 8 a.m.; 19—at Whitewater Invitational, 9 a.m.; 24—at Antioch, Ill., 4:15 p.m.; 26—at Racine Park, 9:30 a.m.; 29—at Lakes Tournament, 9 a.m.

September—1—at Delavan-Darien, 4:15 p.m.; 3—at Burlington, 4:15 p.m.; 8—Union Grove, 4:15 p.m.; 10—at Waterford, 4:15 p.m.; 14—Wilmot, 4:15 p.m.; 17—at Lake Geneva Badger, 4:15 p.m.; 21—Elkhorn, 4:15 p.m; 24—SLC Meet at Lake Geneva Badger, 2 p.m.; 26—SLC Meet at Lake Geneva Badger, 8 a.m.

October—5—at Division-1 Bradford subsectional, 9 a.m.; 7 or 8—at Division-1 Brookfield East sectional, TBA; 15-17—at WIAA State Individual Tournament (Nielsen Stadium, Madison), TBA; 23-24—at WIAA State Team Tournament (Nielsen Stadium, Madison), TBA.

St. Joseph

*Coach: Gail Bedore, sixth season

*Last year: Finished third in the Midwest Classic Conference Tournament (4-1 in MCC duals). Placed fifth in the WIAA Division-2 sectional.

*Top returning players: Amanda Dick junior; Gina Matteucci, senior; Bridget O’Toole, junior; Kelcy Owens, sophomore; Michelle Pierce, senior; Meghan Schiaffino, sophomore; Claire Skuble, senior.

*Other prospects: Alaina Anderson, freshman; Megan Irving, freshman; Kristine Kalinka, freshman.

*FYI: There are 24 players in the St. Joseph program. ... Dick (No. 1 singles) and Matteucci (No. 2) both qualified for the State Tournament last season. Dick became the first player to advance to the Division-2 State semifinals and wound up placing fourth. “Our 1-2 punch is solid,” Bedore said. ... O’Toole was also a State qualifier in doubles with now-graduated Jordan Naidicz. ... Anderson and Irving form the No. 1 doubles team. ... Stacy Raduechel, a former State Tournament qualifier at Bradford, is a first-year assistant coach. ... “Their goal this year, they really want to get to Team State,” Bedore said about her team.

SCHEDULE

August—31—at Round Lake, Ill., 3:45 p.m.

September—2—Racine Prairie, 3:45 p.m.; 9—at Whitefish Bay Dominican, 3:45 p.m.; 10—University School of Milwaukee, 4 p.m.; 12—at Elkhorn Quadrangular, 8 a.m.; 16—at Brookfield Academy, 3:45 p.m.; 19—at Palatine, Ill., Invitational, 8 a.m.; 23—Greendale Martin Luther, 3:45 p.m.; 26—MCC Tournament at Racine Prairie, 9 a.m.; 30—Racine St. Catherine’s, 3:45 p.m.

October—5—Division-2 Racine Prairie subsectional, TBA; 8—at Division-2 Brown Deer sectional (Pleasant Valley Tennis Club, Jackson), TBA; 15-17—at WIAA State Individual Tournament (Nielsen Stadium, Madison), TBA; 23-24—at WIAA State Team Tournament (Nielsen Stadium, Madison), TBA.

Tremper

*Co-coaches: Tom Pacetti, 17th season, and Mike Lewis, 14th season

*Last year: Finished third at the Southeast Conference Tournament and fourth in the WIAA Division-1 sectional.

*Top returning players: Mara Bertog, sophomore; Julia Broesch, senior; Garette Gessert, sophomore; Jenna Humphreys, sophomore; Marissa Lucke, sophomore; Brianna Riley, sophomore; Rachel Shapiro, senior.

*Other prospects: Brooke Bloedorn, junior; Megan Humphreys, freshman; Sonja Johnson, senior; Kari Kirkagaard, junior; Emily Rabin, sophomore; Hollie White, senior.

*FYI: There are 64 players in the Tremper program. ... As freshmen, Jenna Humphreys and Riley qualified for the State Tournament in doubles. ... Bertog was the runner-up at No. 3 singles at the SEC Tournament. ... With Megan Humphreys moving into the No. 1 singles spot, Gessert, last year’s No. 1 player, will play No. 2 or 3. “Megan is a pretty solid player,” Pacetti said. “She’s a tournament player. She’s definitely going to give us depth in our singles lineup.” ... Shapiro, a three-year varsity player, will play No. 2 or 3 singles. She is also a captain along Broesch.

SCHEDULE

August—25—at Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln Quadrangular, 9:40 a.m.; 27-28—at Brookfield Central Invitational, 10 a.m.

September—1—Racine Case, 4 p.m.; 3—at Muskego, 4 p.m.; 8—at Franklin (Tuckaway Country Club), 4 p.m.; 10—Racine Horlick, 4 p.m.; 11—at Nicolet Invitational, 2 p.m.; 12—at Nicolet Invitational, 9 a.m.; 15—Oak Creek, 4 p.m.; 17—Racine Park, 4 p.m.; 18—at Brookfield Central Invitational, 3 p.m.; 19—at Brookfield Central Invitational, 9 a.m.; 22—at Bradford, 4 p.m.; 26—at Nicolet Invitational, 8:30 a.m.; 29—at Hartland Arrowhead, 4 p.m.

October—1—SEC Meet at TBA, noon; 3—SEC Meet at TBA, 8 a.m.; 5—at Division-1 Bradford subsectional, 9 a.m.; 7 or 8—at Division-1 Brookfield East sectional, TBA; 15-17—at WIAA State Individual Tournament (Nielsen Stadium, Madison), TBA; 23-24—at WIAA State Team Tournament (Nielsen Stadium, Madison), TBA.

Wilmot

*Coach: Lee Blount, second season

*Last year: Finished third in the Southern Lakes Conference Tournament.

*Top returning players: Lynnette Bychowski, senior; Dana Chellman, senior; Katelyn Horn, senior; Amanda Jouette, senior; Liz Marquardt, senior; Chloe Mayer, senior.

*Other prospects: Meghan Bahr, senior; Vanessa Knautz, senior; Ashley Knoll, sophomore; Kim Payton, senior.

*FYI: There are 29 players in the Wilmot program. ... The Panthers placed second at the East Troy Quad on Tuesday as Marquardt, Chellman, Mayer and Bychowski all brought home first-place finishes. ... At last year’s SLC Tournament, Marquardt took first at No. 2 singles, while Mayer won the No. 4 singles title. Chellman was the runner-up at No. 3 singles.

SCHEDULE

(Home matches at Wilmot Highway C Sports Fields)

August—25—at Antioch, Ill., 4:30 p.m.; 27—at East Troy, 4 p.m.

September—1—Burlington, 4:15 p.m.; 3—at Lake Geneva Badger, 4:15 p.m.; 5—Wilmot Quadrangular, 9 a.m.; 8—Elkhorn, 4:15 p.m.; 10—Delavan-Darien, 4:15 p.m.; 14—at Central (Camp Wonderland), 4:15 p.m.; 15—Racine St. Catherine’s, 4:15 p.m.; 17—at Union Grove, 4:15 p.m.; 21—Waterford, 4:15 p.m.; 24—SLC Meet at Lake Geneva Badger, 2 p.m.; 26—SLC Meet at Lake Geneva Badger, 8 a.m.

October—5—at Division-1 Bradford subsectional, 9 a.m.; 7 or 8—at Division-1 Brookfield East sectional, TBA; 15-17—at WIAA State Individual Tournament (Nielsen Stadium, Madison), TBA; 23-24—at WIAA State Team Tournament (Nielsen Stadium, Madison), TBA.