WPIAL Tennis History: 4th Title Within Reach
WPIAL tennis history could gain another remarkable chapter as Shady Side Academy senior Meriwether McCargo attempts to accomplish something no player has done in the highest classification of the district’s girls singles tournament.
McCargo entered the 2026 WPIAL girls tennis singles championship as the No. 1 seed in Class 3A, carrying three consecutive district titles into her senior season. A fourth championship would give her a place alongside the most accomplished singles champions in WPIAL history while also establishing a new record for consecutive Class 3A championships. TTribLive+1
The 2026 tournament is being played Sept. 23-24, with Class 3A competition beginning at North Allegheny before the championship and consolation matches move to Bethel Park. The top three finishers in each classification qualify for the PIAA Girls’ Tennis Singles Championships. WWP IAL
For McCargo, however, the tournament represents more than another postseason appearance. It is the final opportunity of her high school career to add to a championship record that began when she was a freshman.
McCargo has already made WPIAL tennis history
McCargo’s run began in 2023, when she arrived at the WPIAL singles championship as a freshman and defeated defending champion Amelia Williams of Penn-Trafford in the Class 3A final.
That victory was significant for several reasons. McCargo became the third Shady Side Academy athlete to win a WPIAL girls tennis singles championship, following Lauren Greco and Ananya Dua. She also became the second consecutive freshman to capture the Class 3A title. WWP IAL
The championship did not prove to be a one-season breakthrough.
McCargo successfully defended her title in 2024. She defeated Williams again, this time in a dramatic three-set final that finished 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(5). The match lasted 32 games, making it the longest WPIAL girls tennis singles championship match by games, according to Shady Side Academy. WWP IAL+1
Then came 2025.
McCargo entered the Class 3A tournament as the defending champion and again reached the final against Williams. She completed a three-peat with a 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 victory. WPIAL records list McCargo as the 2023, 2024 and 2025 Class 3A singles champion. WWP IAL
That made her the first Shady Side Academy player to win three consecutive WPIAL singles titles. WWP IAL
Now, the next milestone is within reach.
A fourth consecutive title would break new ground
The WPIAL has conducted girls tennis singles championships since 1973. Over more than five decades of competition, several players have accumulated three championships, but only one has won four consecutive titles.
That player is Laura Greb of Knoch.
Greb won four straight Class 2A championships from 2017 through 2020. The WPIAL identifies her as the only girls tennis player to win four consecutive singles titles. WWP IAL+1
McCargo therefore entered the 2026 tournament with an opportunity to match that achievement.
The distinction is particularly notable because McCargo is competing in Class 3A, the highest classification of the WPIAL girls singles tournament. A fourth straight championship would give her four consecutive titles in that classification and place her alongside Greb in the league’s record book.
It would also extend a championship run that has lasted throughout her entire high school career.
The path began with a freshman championship
McCargo’s first title came against a player who had already reached the top of the WPIAL.
In the 2023 final, Williams entered as the defending champion after winning the Class 3A crown in 2022. McCargo, meanwhile, was only a freshman.
The Shady Side Academy player won that final in straight sets, 7-6(1), 6-1. Her performance completed a tournament run that included victories over Mt. Lebanon’s Jackie Tang, Bethel Park’s Cami Fisher and Pine-Richland’s Caroline Prisk before the championship match. WWP IAL
The victory immediately established McCargo as one of the district’s emerging players.
A year later, the expectations were different.
She was no longer the newcomer. She was the defending champion and the No. 1 seed.
McCargo responded by winning again.
The 2024 championship was especially memorable because of its length and competitiveness. The three-set match against Williams went to a deciding tiebreak, with McCargo eventually securing the title. WWP IAL
That result gave her consecutive championships before she had even reached her junior season.
The 2025 championship completed the three-peat
McCargo’s third championship arrived in 2025.
The WPIAL again placed her at the top of the Class 3A bracket. Williams was once again the player standing between McCargo and another championship.
The final produced another competitive match, but McCargo prevailed 6-3, 2-6, 6-4. With that result, she became the first Shady Side Academy player to win three consecutive WPIAL singles championships. WWP IAL+1
The achievement also added to Shady Side Academy’s place in the WPIAL record book.
According to WPIAL championship records, McCargo’s three titles are part of a larger school history that includes Greco’s championship and Dua’s two titles. The 2025 championship also moved Shady Side Academy into sole possession of second place in the WPIAL’s all-time list of schools with girls singles championships, according to the league. WWP IAL
2026 bracket puts McCargo at No. 1
The 2026 field once again features McCargo as the top seed.
The WPIAL announced that 31 athletes qualified for the two-classification singles tournament, with 16 competitors in Class 3A and 15 in Class 2A. McCargo qualified through Section 3 and entered the Class 3A bracket as the No. 1 seed. WWP IAL
The other top seeds in Class 3A include Bethel Park senior Cami Fisher, Fox Chapel junior Clara Drahnak and North Allegheny freshman Winni Hayward.
That creates an experienced but competitive field around McCargo.
Fisher returns after finishing third in the previous year’s WPIAL tournament. Hayward, meanwhile, arrives as a young contender after winning North Allegheny’s Section 2 singles championship. WWP IAL+1
The tournament structure leaves little room for error.
Class 3A’s opening rounds and quarterfinals are scheduled at North Allegheny, while the later championship rounds are at Bethel Park. The first-round matches began at 11 a.m. on Sept. 23. TTribLive+1
Shady Side Academy has built a strong tennis program
McCargo’s individual success has also come during a period of sustained success for Shady Side Academy’s girls tennis program.
The school reported that its 2025 team finished the regular season 13-0 and ended the year 19-1 overall. The Bulldogs won both the section and WPIAL Class 3A team championships before advancing to the PIAA semifinals. SShady Side Academy
That broader team success provides important context for McCargo’s individual accomplishments.
She has not been competing in isolation. Shady Side Academy has developed a program capable of competing for championships at both the team and individual levels.
The school’s recent history also includes McCargo’s teammates reaching deep into WPIAL competition. In 2024, for example, teammate Brooke Henderson reached the Class 3A singles semifinals before losing to McCargo. WWP IAL
The depth of the program has helped make Shady Side Academy a regular presence near the top of WPIAL girls tennis.
What a fourth title would mean
The significance of McCargo’s 2026 campaign is largely historical rather than simply statistical.
Three consecutive titles already place her among the district’s multi-time champions. WPIAL records show that several athletes have won three singles championships, including Gretchen Rush, Kelly Kolankiewicz, Sarah Riske, Michaela Kissell and Ronit Yurovsky. TTribLive+1
But four consecutive championships are different.
Greb’s four-title run from 2017 through 2020 remains the benchmark. McCargo’s opportunity is to become only the second WPIAL girls tennis player to reach four consecutive singles championships. WWP IAL
The distinction would also cap a four-year progression that began with a freshman title and continued through sophomore and junior championships.
Few high school athletes get four seasons to pursue the same district championship. Even fewer finish each of their first three seasons as the reigning champion.
That is the context surrounding McCargo’s senior tournament.
The championship is also a final high school chapter
There is another element that makes the 2026 tournament different.
McCargo is a senior.
Regardless of the result, the WPIAL tournament represents the final chapter of her high school singles career. Her record already includes three WPIAL championships, a historic three-peat and a championship match record that includes one of the longest finals in WPIAL girls tennis history. SShady Side Academy+1
The 2026 tournament is therefore both a continuation and a conclusion.
McCargo entered as the player everyone was chasing. She also entered with the chance to join a very small group of athletes whose names remain permanently connected to WPIAL championship history.
WPIAL tennis history is on the line
The story surrounding McCargo’s senior season is straightforward: three championships have already been won, and a fourth would create another milestone.
The WPIAL’s official records establish the historical benchmark. Laura Greb remains the only player to win four consecutive girls singles titles, while McCargo entered the 2026 tournament seeking to become the second. WWP IAL+1
Her road to that opportunity began as a freshman in 2023 and continued through championship victories in 2024 and 2025.
Now, as a senior and the No. 1 seed in Class 3A, McCargo has one more tournament to complete the run.
Whatever happens on the courts at North Allegheny and Bethel Park, her first three WPIAL championships have already established her as one of the defining players of Shady Side Academy’s recent tennis era.
A fourth would add another historic line to the record book.
And that is why the 2026 WPIAL girls tennis singles tournament carries such significance for McCargo, Shady Side Academy and WPIAL tennis history. WWP IAL+1
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/wpial-girls-tennis/ - High school tennis news →
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External Sources
- WPIAL 2026 Girls’ Tennis Singles Brackets
- WPIAL Girls’ Tennis Singles Championship History
- WPIAL Class 3A Champions History
- Shady Side Academy Girls Varsity Tennis
- Original TribLive article
