Gateway’s Adam Memije gains revenge in WPIAL Class 3A tennis finals; newcomer Max Henson of Belle Vernon wins 2A title

By: Brennan Valladares
Friday, April 11, 2025 | 5:53 PM

Previous Next

Gateway’s Adam Memije and Belle Vernon’s Max Henson took home gold at the WPIAL tennis finals Friday at Bethel Park.

Memije, the No. 2 seed in Class 3A, took down top seed Advaita Sircar of North Allegheny in three sets. The Gateway senior dropped the first set, 7-5, before claiming the next two by the scores of 7-5 and 6-4.

Henson, Class 2A’s top seed, defeated the No. 2 seed Justin Garvey of North Catholic in straight sets, 6-1, 6-1.

The Class 3A match was a rematch of the 2024 finals between Memije and Sircar, the defending champion.

Sircar dropped the first three games of the first set but was able to rally to take a 7-5 win. In the second set, with the score tied 4-4, Memije broke Sircar’s serve after trailing 30-0 to take a 5-4 advantage.

Sircar secured a service break in the following game, but Memije immediately responded with a break of his own to take a 6-5 lead. In the twelfth game of the set, the Gateway senior trailed 40-0 before surging back to claim the set, 7-5.

In the final set, both players exchanged games with the receiver winning the first seven. In the eighth game, Memije held serve to take a 5-3 lead. Sircar raced through the next game, scoring four unanswered points, cutting into his deficit. However, with Memije serving, the Gateway product built a 30-0 lead before closing the title match three points later.

With the win, Memije has now won a singles (2025), doubles (2023) and team (2023) championship.

“I’m ecstatic, yeah. I mean, the work I’ve put in over the past year has been good, and it paid off in the end,” Memije said.

Memije will prepare for a possible rematch against Sircar in the PIAA championships, saying, “I’m ready to play him in states. I’m going to keep training every day, focusing on the things I need to work on from this match.”

Henson, meanwhile, rolled through the Class 2A bracket, losing a combined three games in four matches. In his first year playing high school tennis, the junior was proud of his performance on the WPIAL stage.

“I’ve never played WPIALs before. I’ve never even played high school tennis before. So, you know, it’s pretty cool. And I got a medal. I like medals. It’s pretty nice,” Henson said with a grin.

Henson, a Cleveland State recruit, will go down as Belle Vernon’s first boys tennis champion, even though the school doesn’t field a full team.

“I’m happy to represent my hometown,’ he said. “So, you know, it feels good and hopefully I’ll do my best to bring back a state championship.”

In the lone consolation match of the day, Gateway’s Zidaan Hassan defeated Colin Stalnaker of Franklin Regional, 7-6 (4), 6-0, for a third-place finish in Class 3A. In Class 2A, Montour’s John Rohrkaste won by default over injured Jonah Jasek of South Park, automatically qualifying for the state championships.

In Class 3A, the top two players make states. In Class 2A, the top three advance.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Gateway, North Allegheny, North Catholic