New year, fresh start, and in girls tennis … same old, same old.

When they handed out the hardware Saturday in the wake of the West Region girls tennis tournament, two really familiar names headed the lists.

Century's Hallie Welk garnered the singles championship for the fourth straight year. Rachel Hennessy of Williston was there, too. Different doubles partner - Katie Slemin - but the same result, first place for the fifth straight spring.

Welk, a CHSsenior, trimmed Caitlin Bakke of St.Mary's 6-3, 6-2 in the singles final at the TomO'Leary courts. Hennessy and Slemin outlasted Century's Sara Janes and Erin Swanberg in three sets for the doubles title.

Welk said she doesn't look at her success as a four-year run. To her, it's a case of four separate achievements.

"It's pretty cool," she said

Welk, now 27-1, had a greater struggle with ChelseyGalipeau of Dickinson in the semifinals than she did in the championship match.

While Bakke was bowling over Tyne Oberlander of Bismarck 6-1, 6-1, Welk fought her way past Galipeau 5-7, 6-2, 7-6 (7-2).

"That was scary.Ididn't know what was going to happen. She played really well," Welk said, looking back on the semifinals.

Welk said she took care of Galipeau, also a senior, in two sets during the dual season, but Saturday was another matter.

"I wasn't playing my game. I was pretty much playing her game,"said Welk, a senior who is headed for the University of North Dakota. "She's more of a counter-puncher.She gets everything back and you really have to work hard to score a point against her."

Welk was prepared for a battle with Bakke, a seventh- grader, too.

"Iwas a little nervous. … I've played Caitlin four times now, and they all have been pretty close. In the East-Westtournament it was three sets, and in Thursday's dual it was three sets," Welk said.

Saturday it was 6-3, 6-2.

"Ijust decided to go out and play my game, relax and have fun. It worked out," Welk said.

Hennessy has teamed with three different partners to run off her five straight regional championships. She won the first three with Emily Sell and last year won with Tarren Jundt. She and Sell won a state title in 2006.

Slemin, a junior, and Hennessy, a senior, have played only a dozen matches as a doubles team this season, going 11-1. Their only loss was to Grand Forks Red River's Mimi Yunker and Lalangi Marasinghe in last week's East-West tournament in West Fargo.

"The (East-West)tournament was when we started playing together this year," Hennessy said. "We took second and lost to Red River. Before that we'd played one match together."

Even though she'd hardly played any doubles with Slemin until a week ago, Hennessy was confident it would be a good fit.

"We've been playing sports together since the seventh grade,"Hennessy said. "She's my linemate in hockey, and we hang out."

Saturday's three-set victory was the second win for Hennessy and Slemin against Janes and Swanberg this week. The Williston duo won in straight sets in Tuesday's dual action. Janes and Swanberg are 7-3 together.

Hennessy and Slemin got progressively better in the championship match. "We split games most of the way through the first set,"Hennessy said. "We were getting mixed up over where we were supposed to be. Ithink communication was our main problem."

"When we lost that first set (in a tiebreaker)it was kind of a setback, but toward the end of the second set we pulled together as a team,"Hennessy added.

The top eight singles and doubles finishers qualified for the state tournament, which begins next Thursday in Minot. The top four teams - Century,St.Mary's, Williston and Minot - qualified for the state tournament on Thursday.

Singles

Semifinals: Hallie Welk,Century, def. Chelsey Galipeau, Dickinson, 5-7, 6-2, 7-6 (7-2). Caitlin Bakke, St. Mary's, def. Tyne Oberlander, Bismarck, 6-1, 6-1.

Championship:Welk def. Bakke, 6-3, 6-2.

Third place: Oberlander def. Galipeau, 6-2, 6-4.

Consolation quarterfinals: Alicia Beck, St. Mary's, def. Julie Olson,Minot, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4). Sarah Muhs, Jamestown, def. Mary Roller, St. Mary's, 6-2, 6-2. Hailey Whitman,Century, def. Cayla Cordova, Mandan, 6-1, 6-1. Caitlin Dunn, Dickinson, def. Alex McEvers, Bismarck, 6-1, 6-4.

Consolation semifinals:Beck def. Muhs, 7-6 (7-5), 6-1. Whitman def. Dunn, 6-3, 6-1.

Consolation final:Beck def. Whitman, 6-4, 6-3.

Seventh place: Muhs def. Dunn, 6-7 (4-7), 6-3, 6-3.

Doubles

Semifinals:Rachel Hennessy-Katie Slemin, Williston, def. Linsey Eckman-Shantelle Montgomery, Minot, 6-1, 6-1. Sarah Janes-Erin Swanberg, Century, def. Alek Haugen-Erin Haugen,Bismarck, 6-3, 6-4.

Championship:Hennessy-Slemin def. Janes-Swanberg, 6-7 (4-7), 6-4, 6-2.

Third place:Haugen-Haugen def. Eckman-Montgomery, 6-3, 6-4.

Consolation quarterfinals:Danielle Bauer-Jacey Porter, Mandan, def. Taryn Bohan-Bryce Kadrmas, St. Mary's, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4. Mollie Fearing-MeganRyckman,Williston, def. Jordan Halseth-Tia Presley, Minot Ryan, 6-0, 6-4. Bridgette Hineman-RachelLarson,Century, def. Erin Black-Taylor Peterson, MInot, 6-3, 6-4. Tania Bjone-Megan Stark, Jamestown, def. Rachel Kelly-Steph Wallace, Dickinson, 6-4, 6-4.

Consolation semifinals: Bauer-Porter def. Fearing-Ryckman, 6-7 (1-7), 6-4, 6-2. Hineman-Larson def. Bjone-Stark, 7-5, 7-5.

Consolation final: Bauer-Porter def. Hineman-Larson, 6-3, 4-6, 6-1.

Seventh place: Bjone-Stark def. Fearing-Ryckman, 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3.

Awards

West Region senior athlete nominees:ChelseyGalipeau, Dickinson; Rachel Hennessy, Williston; Hallie Welk,Century.

Coaches of the year: Scott McPherson,Century, and Scott DeLorme, Minot.