Marian Central senior Jenna Remke and sophomore Julia Lukey united to win the Chicagoland Christian Conference and Class 1A sectional doubles championships before capping off their standout season with a top-eight finish at state.

Remke (30-5) and Lukey (31-4) were each named to the All-State second team for their efforts this season. The Hurricane doubles duo opened the 1A state tournament with three wins in a row. After a win and a loss on the second day, the two bowed out with a loss in the consolation semifinals to earn a top-eight finish.

As a result of Remke and Lukey’s efforts, along with strong play from sophomore Jordan Cheng at singles, Marian Central took 10th out of 57 1A schools at the state tournament. Both Remke and Lukey were named to the Northwest Herald All-Area first team last year, with Remke also earning All-Area consideration as a sophomore.

For their performance, Remke and Lukey were selected as the 2025 Northwest Herald Girls Tennis Players of the Year from the sports staff, with input from area coaches. Huntley’s Ainura and Gulnura Baidylaeva, Crystal Lake Central’s Evie Johnson, Hampshire’s Isabella Kowalak and Huntley’s Ella Doughty also were considered for the honor.

Remke and Lukey spoke with Northwest Herald sports writer Russ Hodges about their season, favorite moments and more.

Where have you improved the most as doubles teammates from last season to this season?

Remke: As doubles teammates, Julia and I improved the most in our communication and court awareness, allowing us to play more confidently knowing we had each other’s backs in each and every point.

Lukey: Learning how to play with each other. Jenna’s a super good net player, so she can be really good at the net. I was definitely nervous coming into my freshman year, and it was a little scary playing doubles with someone I hadn’t met. We were able to find out connection, and it panned out really well.

How do your skills complement each other on the court?

Remke: Everyone watching us always said I was able to get to nearly any ball, and Jules was able to close out rallies with ease. This dynamic gave us many opportunities to win points and stay in control of the match.

Lukey: She’s a really good net and volley player and she knows when to be aggressive. I’m a pretty good baseline player, so with her being good at the net, it works out because I’m good at rallying it out and she’ll be really good at finishing at the net.

How are the two of you able to maintain good chemistry?

Remke: We are able to maintain good chemistry throughout the season by talking and giving high fives after every point and lifting each other up even in tough matches.

Lukey: Pumping each other up is the main thing. It’s super hard when you’re slowly starting to lose, but when you have a good partner and you know you can play well, we know that we can do it. We pump each other up and stay positive the entire time.

What were your favorite moments from this season?

Remke: My singular favorite moment from the season was saying a Hail Mary with Julia in the middle of our match tiebreaker in the quarterfinals. We always found time to thank the Lord for giving up the opportunity to compete.

Lukey: State. We had so many good matches against so many good girls and we really stepped it up, which was really fun.

What did it mean to be named to the All-State team this year?

Remke: It definitely meant so much to be named to the All-State Team. It was truly a reflection of all the hard work me and Julia put in throughout the season and the support of all of our coaches and family.

Lukey: I didn’t even know if I was going to go to high school or be homeschooled, so to be doing this well in high school tennis means so much to me, especially since I’ve played for so long. Being seen for an accomplishment like that feels unreal.

What’s your favorite thing to eat or drink before a match?

Remke: My favorite thing to eat or drink before a match was an iced coffee. Not super nourishing, but it became a part of my routine before early morning matches.

Lukey: Either Mott’s gummies or Goldfish and some sort of Liquid IV or water.

What kind of music pumps you up before a match?

Remke: On the bus on the way to matches, we would always sing to music as a team, whether it was our favorite country songs or just music to get us excited to play.

Lukey: I’m into all sorts of rock, so people like Deftones and Pink Floyd. I really like Gorillaz. On the more chill side, I really like Amy Winehouse.

Who is your favorite athlete and why?

Remke: My favorite athlete is Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone because she dominates the 200 and 400 (meter) races in track and field, winning gold medals at the Olympics and World Championships, and does it all while praising the Lord.

Lukey: Jannik Sinner. I love watching him and I love looking up to him. He’s so amazing and he’s so fun to watch him play. I was in Italy once and I didn’t get to see him play, but I got to watch him practice his serves and it was unreal for me.

What’s an interesting fact people may not know about you?

Remke: An interesting fact people may not know about me is I am chasing the outdoor 400-meter all-time record at my school, following in the footsteps of my sister, who has the 300-meter hurdle record.

Lukey: I do jiu-jitsu and I really love art.