Stewart cruised past opponents on the tennis court for Quaker Valley

By: Joe Sager
Friday, August 2, 2019 | 6:32 PM

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When Cate Stewart moved with her family to the Quaker Valley School District after her freshman year of high school, she wasn’t sure how she would fit into a new community.

She had nothing to worry about as she clicked immediately with her tennis teammates and schoolmates. She went on to a storied athletic career that will be punctuated with her induction into the Quaker Valley Sports Hall of Fame on Sept. 29 at a ceremony at Sewickley Heights Golf Club.

“It’s absolutely amazing. It brings back a lot of memories, for sure,” she said. “I honestly never really thought I’d get in. It’s really thanks to my old coach, Jeff Sebastian, for nominating me. I am really excited he did that and super pumped about the honor.”

In a unique twist, Stewart will be inducted three times as the 2006 and ’07 girls tennis teams she played on were named to the QV Sports Hall of Fame, as well.

“I screamed when I got the text. That’s the coolest thing,” she said. “It’ll be like a huge reunion. I love all those girls. I have so many good memories from that time in my life. It’ll be really amazing to see them all.”

Stewart spent her freshman year at Shady Side Academy. However, she had to adjust to a new community when her family moved to Sewickley before her sophomore year.

“We had preseason tennis practice before school started, and that made it so much easier to make a couple friends before school started,” she said. “I knew Sarah Richman and Kaitlin Wolz from training at the Pennsylvania Tennis Academy, so I kind of had a couple friends before I got to Quaker Valley.

“I wanted to make friends with everybody. I am the kind of person that just likes to talk to everyone, and I try to make friends with whomever I run into. I am pretty outgoing. I really loved my time in high school. There are so many great people in that community.”

Stewart immediately rose to the top of the Quakers lineup and remained there for her three years.

She compiled an 85-8 overall record and a 42-3 mark in tournament play.

She was a three-time MAC and WPIAL Class 2A individual champ and part of three WPIAL Class 2A team championship squads. Her only tournament losses in her high school career were in the PIAA finals, where she fell to Wyomissing’s Martha Blakely three years in a row.

“Cate was fantastic. Her presence was an automatic point for our team,” Sebastian said. “Her level of play was superior. There were matches where girls from the other team couldn’t even return a serve. She’d sweep them 6-0, 6-0, and the match would be over in 25 minutes. She could put the ball on any corner of the service line. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

During her senior year at Quaker Valley, Cate, a 2008 graduate, was named an All-American, one of 36 girls chosen by the National High School Tennis All-American Foundation.

“That was nice because you put in all this work behind the scenes that people don’t always see, so it’s nice to get noticed in that way,” she said. “It’s nice when that becomes public and almost becomes an affirmation to yourself.”

After Quaker Valley, Stewart continued her tennis career at Brown, where she was a letterwinner and earned the ITA Scholar Athlete award. Stewart attended law school and practices law in Charlotte, N.C. She is married to Stephen Jayne.

“I am so thankful to have all the experiences I did at Quaker Valley and for all the people I met along the way,” she said. “You can never accomplish these things by yourself. It’s a team effort. I am really most thankful for that.”

Joe Sager is a freelance writer.

Tags: Quaker Valley