HAYS, Kan. - Fort Hays State Tennis Coach Brian Flax has signed five high school standouts that will join the Tiger squad in the fall of 2026. The group includes Caelie Cox, Madeline Deters, Molly Gorman, Kali Keough and Sydney Schumaker.

"I am extremely excited to add these five outstanding players and wonderful people to our team," said Flax. "They all want to continue to grow our program after our breakout season last year. All five know how to win and what it takes to win. I'm happy to find Kansas and Oklahoma kids that will help us win at this level."
 


Caelie Cox
Bixby, Oklahoma - Bixby High School
Caelie has been a mainstay at the 6A Championships in Oklahoma, finishing fifth as a freshman, sixth as a sophomore and fourth as a junior in singles competition. She has compiled 62 wins in three seasons of competing for the Spartans with her senior season yet to come in the spring. Caelie is currently ranked eighth in the Oklahoma district and 29th in the UST Missouri Valley which is made up of five states. She plans to major in Biochemistry.

 

Madeline Deters
Topeka, Kansas - Topeka High School
Madeline joins the Tigers after taking sixth place as a senior at the 6A Championships this past October. She won her regional on her way to her impressive state finish. She compiled a 33-6 record as a senior, breaking the Trojans record for most wins in a season. As a junior she finished eighth at state and was awarded the Rising Star Award as she won 27 matches that year. Madeline also qualified for state as a freshman, finishing her career with 91 wins. She enjoys playing the trumpet in the band at Topeka HS. Madeline will study radiology.



Molly Gorman
Topeka, Kansas - Topeka Seaman High School
Molly comes to Hays with ample experience in singles and doubles. As a freshman and sophomore, she played doubles and qualified for state while compiling 51 wins. As a junior and senior, she moved to singles and excelled even more. She went 28-6 as a junior, finishing 10th at the 5A Championships and helping the Vikings finish third as a team. Molly finished her senior campaign with 27 victories and a sixth-place finish while helping the Vikings to a state runner-up finish. Molly wrapped up her high school career with 106 wins and was a four-time state medalist. She plans on studying Nursing at FHSU.

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Kali Keough
Emporia, Kansas - Emporia High School
Kali just completed an outstanding career for Emporia High School, placing in singles all four years at the 5A Championships. She finished fourth as a senior and had 28 victories on the way after placing ninth and racking up 15 wins as a junior. Kali started her freshman and sophomore campaigns out with a bang, totaling 50 wins and placing eighth and fourth at state, respectively. She completed her career with 93 wins for the Spartans. Kali plans to study Biology at Fort Hays State.



Sydney Schumaker
Maize, Kansas - Maize South High School
Sydney has also had success playing singles and doubles at the 5A Championships. As a freshman she played singles and qualified for state with 20 wins. She made the switch to doubles as a sophomore and was part of the team that finished second at state with 32 wins and was name All-Wichita Metro first team. Sydney again teamed up in doubles as a junior, finishing sixth at state with 26 wins. She returned to singles competition as a senior, finishing ninth at state with 24 wins and again earned All-Wichita Metro honors. Sydney collected 102 wins over her high school career. She plans on pursuing an accounting degree.