Rose Katen managed an achievement this year that’s uncommon even at Cheyenne Mountain, a school with a storied tennis history.

Katen capped her career with a third consecutive individual title and, after winning the 4A No. 3 and 2 singles titles as a sophomore and junior, she won at No. 1 singles this year. That’s rarefied air, even at Cheyenne Mountain. 

Dave Adams, who coached at Cheyenne Mountain from 1987 until his 2026 retirement, couldn’t recall all the players — boys or girls — who obtained a No. 1 singles title. But it’s a small list.

According to the Colorado High School Activities Association’s archives, Katen became just the sixth Cheyenne Mountain No. 1 girls singles player to earn the achievement. Katen is the first Red-Tailed Hawks girls player to win at the position since Kalyssa Hall won the crown in 2013 and 2014.

Katen joined Molly Hourigan (1982), Rebecca Billingsley (1991), Becky Varnum Bucolo (1995-98), Casey Wetzig (2007) and Hall in the exclusive club.

“Rose made it this far because of her work ethic,” Adams said. “She would go up to a facility in (Arvada) and work out three to four times a week during the offseason. She probably took some licks, but that’s what I love about Rose, she didn’t cower from that experience; she doubles down.” 

Katen, the Gazette Preps’ Girls Tennis Peak Performer of the Year, traveled to Apex Tennis Center in Arvada during the offseason to train, which is a 2 1/2-hour drive one way. Round trip equates to just over part-time job hours. And that’s how Katen treated her training.

“Going up there exposed a lot of my weaknesses,” Katen said. “When I would play less competitive matches, I would think my shots looked good and a lot of that would be because my opponent missed before I did. Going up there exposed what I needed to work on, which was helpful because I could go back and work on that on the days I didn’t drive up. Being exposed to different styles of play helped me change my style of play during matches.”

Katen took junior and adult classes at the facility and acquired the tools necessary to navigate No. 1 singles competition. 

Comfort in returning powerful serves, enduring lengthy matches and attacking opponents at the net. Katen bolstered each skill and Adams noticed, especially the change in Katen’s confidence. 

“You would go to the fence with her at changeovers and she would come back with a big grin on her face and she would say, ‘I have so many ideas about how to play this match,’” Adams said. “A lot of kids come to the fence and they’re a little shy to say what they think. … With Rose, it was letting her tell us what would work, but she was always willing to listen. It wasn’t a situation of her saying, ‘This is what I’m going to do.’ But almost every time she would say that, it was almost always what we were thinking of as coaches.” 

That chutzpah carried Katen to a 12-2 record, 16-2 including her perfect run during May’s individual state tournament. Of those two defeats, one came to 5A Cherry Creek’s Autumn Doyle. The final loss of Katen’s career came April 24 against Windsor’s Aristea Fulgenzi.

“During the first set, I got in my head a lot,” Katen said. “We had a tiebreaker and it was match point for me. Had I won that point, I would have been up one set. She hit a ball that went out and I froze and didn’t realize I hadn’t called it out. I didn’t want to seem like I was cheating so I said, ‘Good shot.’ I kept thinking I would have been up a set if I called that out. The whole rest of the match I was going in circles thinking about that and I was losing my mental strength during that second set and I wasn’t focused. That made it easier for her to take advantage of my poor mental state.” 

Adams noted the importance of that match and said Katen blossomed from that experience. Weeks later, Katen and Fulgenzi met in the individual state tournament finals in Pueblo. But Katen needed to overcome a different obstacle in this match.

At the state team tournament opener against Rampart on April 22, Katen sustained a back injury that brought her to tears against Rams star Alexandra Ross. That pain lingered throughout the Red-Tailed Hawks’ final weeks of play and during the finals. 

“I had to stay in Pueblo while the rest of my team went back (to Colorado Springs) on the bus,” Katen said. “Coach and I decided it would be better if I stayed up there to ensure I would have time to do my back exercises and ice and heat in the morning.”

Although Katen felt pressure to beat the Wizards’ freshman, no pipes burst in Pueblo and a diamond shined in the 4A finale. 

Katen beat Fulgenzi 7-5, 6-1 to finish her singles career with the victory. In three years as a singles player, Katen went 39-5 — 51-5 including the victories from her individual state runs.

“I remember thinking about how complete Rose’s game was at this point,” Adams said. “By complete, I mean stroke mechanics and she had a variety of shots. Most kids at that age have one game they can play and Rose has Plan A, Plan B, Plan C. She’s so good at figuring out what’s the best way to match her game against her opponent’s game. When she finds a weakness, she’s relentless.

“From where she was her freshman year, I didn’t think she’d end up playing No. 1 for us. But she battled and she worked to get this far. I’ve admired watching how much her confidence and abilities have grown.”