Glenbard South pair primed for success

The Glenbard South senior doubles team of Jenna Brambora and Rachel Rettger is putting in another outstanding girls tennis season.

The duo, who went to state last year and won two matches, is 20-2 thus far and primed for the upcoming Metro Suburban Conference and sectional meets.

"Both are better this year in every way," said Raiders coach Kevin Graham. "They're both serving better and they're finishing more points with volleys. They're both comfortable at the net and at the baseline. And their chemistry, which was always a key, has even improved."

Brambora and Rettger led the Raiders to the championship of the recent Jacobs Invite.

If they do qualify for the state meet, it will be Brambora's fourth. She made it in both her freshman and sophomore years as a singles player.

Brambora also is a starting point guard on the Glenbard South basketball team, and she is a member of the track team in the spring.

Rettger is an outstanding badminton player.

"Even though they have complete games, they do have different strengths," Graham said. "Rachel has great overheads and serves, while Jenna's a little better in groundstrokes and volleys. They both cover a lot of ground, they know the game and they give us excellent leadership."

Bright future at Metea Valley:

Metea Valley is being led by a group of sophomores who are making this supposedly transition year successful with the promise of future glory.

First singles Michelle He is playing against a lot of the top players in the area, and her record is 12-4.

"She has a good all-court game," said Metea coach Karly Olson. "She's confident coming to the net, which is unusual for a young player. She's consistent and levelheaded and a hard worker. Michelle doesn't overpower you, but she's a crafty player with good touch and she knows how to mix up her shots. She has a chance for state."

Meanwhile, Olson's first doubles, the lefty-righty combination of Stacy Wei and Stephanie Wu, are becoming a force in their first year as partners. Wei, the lefty, has gotten proficient at setting up Wu at the net. They both have good, solid groundstrokes.

"They're good friends, and they practiced a lot in the off-season," Olson said. "They have great chemistry, and they communicate well on the court."

The coach is pleased with the 13-5 Mustangs, a young team that has exceeded expectations

Olson gives a lot of credit for the team's quick development to senior co-captains Molly Heinz and Vrudi Venkatesan, who have provided great leadership for the younger girls.

Doubling up:

Another doubles team to watch is Benet's first doubles, junior Allison Bartley and sophomore Katie Telford.

They started playing together after the high school season started.

"After we put them together it took them a few matches to figure things out," said Benet coach Michael Hand. "But once they got used to the partnership they started going like gangbusters. About nine or 10 games into the season they gave me the feeling that they understood what they needed to do as a doubles team."

According to the coach, both girls are strong servers, they're both confident from the baseline, but they both have an instinct about when to go to the net and put the ball away.

"When they have the opportunity to go for the kill, they do," Hand said. "They've developed the knack that when one is a little down the other girl steps up and brings things back where they need to be. We're hoping that they'll qualify for state."

Another up-and-comer:

Remember the name of Neuqua Valley's freshman Christina Stankovich, who's having great year with a 20-3 record. She's undefeated so far in the Upstate Eight Conference.

Two of her losses came in close matches to the top two players in the state last year, champion Tiffany Chen of Naperville Central and Isabella Lorenzini of Hinsdale Central. Her other loss was to another freshman sensation Kolie Allen of Glenbard East.

"Christina is very athletic and smart and she mixes up her strokes really well," said Neuqua Valley coach Trudy Bennorth. "She has a really good touch game, and she's equally good at the net and at the baseline. We think she can make state as a freshman."

She's one of three freshmen in the Neuqua lineup. The others are Riziki Covington, who plays third singles, and Vena Murales, at third doubles.

"We have a deep team with good leadership," Bennorth said. "We're hoping to get both singles players and a doubles team to state. We have a way to go to qualify our second doubles."