Barrington takes aim at 20th straight MSL title
The next few weeks will be intense for the Mid-Suburban League and other northwest suburban girls tennis teams as the postseason begins with conference tournaments.
The MSL teams will compete at Schaumburg today through Saturday.
Barrington (16-5) has established quite a reliable trend, having won the league title for 19 straight years. The Fillies have already gone 5-0 to secure the MSL West Division title and will be tough to beat as they go after a 20th consecutive overall league crown.
In last year's edition of the MSL tourney, Barrington saw all seven contenders play for finals and came away with four champions. Junior Michelle Linden, who is Barrington's two-time No. 1 singles champion in the MSL, senior Caroline Levy (at no. 2 singles) and senior Addie Hirsch/junior Anna Donoghue (playing No. 1 doubles this year) are all returning conference winners.
"We did meet and exceed (expectations this season)," said Barrington coach Tracy Waters-Miller. "(Our goal) is to represent our school with pride, be great sports on and off the court and enjoy the experience."
Hersey (14-3) also went unbeaten in the East and repeated as a division champ. The Huskies have shown exceptional play from their singles. No. 1 singles player, senior Sara Magnuson, along with no. 2 singles player Ana Karapetiani, a sophomore, and No. 3 singles Tyler Anne Valerio, a senior. They've collectively posted a 64-19 record this season.
"The girls have worked hard and overcome heightened obstacles each week," said Hersey coach Sharon Meintzer. "They have (gained) confidence from each contest, and it is a team goal to peak during conference. (We want) to finish the season on a successful note while recognizing the importance of each team member."
Buffalo Grove (9-4) has had stellar doubles play in the weekend invitationals and finished 4-1 in the East, after dropping a decisive 4-3 meeting with Hersey.
Coach Kevin Schrammel looks to freshman Dasha Ignatova (10-0) at No. 2 singles and junior Anna Sandler/sophomore Christina Harisiadis (9-3) at No. 2 doubles in pursuit of a top-three team tourney finish.
Fremd more than met the expectations of coach Lauren Hall. The Vikings (13-5, 4-1) finished second in the MSL West, and Hall hopes to get strong performances from her No. 1 doubles, senior Maggie Hanna/freshman Kate Bodensteiner (16-11), and the No. 2 senior tandem of Alice Zhang/Caroline Freeman.
"They did such a great job with every dual meet and came to compete against the top schools in the state during our Saturday invites," Hall said. "I would like for the individual teams to finish as strong as they had been in the regular season during the tournament. The competition is extremely competitive in our conference and we see a lot of those teams in our sectional. I think it will be a great preparation/indication of how we will do in sectionals."
Prospect's goal was to win the MSL East, but they faltered while competing closely against Hersey (a 5-2 loss) and Buffalo Grove (4-3). Knights coach Mike McCollaugh is eager to see his group's competitive nature in action. The Knights (7-5, 3-2) have received strong performances from the No. 1 doubles team of senior Alexandra Gorodiski/sophomore Hannah Haeberle, which went 7-1 in the MSL with wins over Fremd, Buffalo Grove and Hersey.
"Our goal is to get a point in each draw," McCollaugh said. "(We want) to face someone who beat us in the regular season. That would give us an opportunity for a higher final finish in the conference. All of our levels know that every match, regardless of what place it is for, counts."
Conant (5-9, 2-3) coach Dave Koleno has seen continued improvement lately. The goal for the Cougars is to play smarter tennis and upset some of the teams that defeated Conant earlier in the season, according to Koleno.
Conant's top players are sophomore Gaby Kaminski (8-10) at No. 1 singles, and the No. 2 doubles team of Haley Anderson/Priya Gupta (4-4).
Rolling Meadows' record stands at 11-11 overall and 2-3 in the East. Sophomore Stefani Nikolova has had a nice season, posting a 14-5 overall record with a 2-3 MSL record (with two of those losses in three sets). The Mustangs have been focusing on fundamentals, match strategy, mental preparation and goal-setting leading up to the conference tournament.
"(Our) team goal is to finish in the top half of the conference," Gumz said. "Our individual goals are to win all of our first-round matches, and then to prepare for our next rounds. We also pride ourselves on playing our best at all times since every match counts toward the team total and eventual place in the conference."
Wheeling (6-7, 1-4) coach Jim Christopher was satisfied with his team's overall performance of a very young cast of Wildcats. Although there were inconsistencies, Christopher has been diligently preparing Wheeling this week by staging competitive situations in practice.
"We'd like to accumulate as many points as possible and have some girls in position to win a medal," Christopher said. "The better we play and the more competitive we are, it should put in a good frame of mind to play well at sectionals."
Central Suburban North: Maine West coach John Bongiorno likes the improvement he's seen from his team. The best results have come from the No. 1 doubles tandem Emily Yalda and Dayna Alvaro (12-10).
East Suburban Catholic: According to coach Alex Bocian, freshman No. 2 singles player Patricia Dizon has had a good season, and No. 3 doubles duo Dominique Divito/Sarah Petrovich recorded an 8-2 record in the ESCC.
"The main thing is to leave it all on the court," Bocian said. "We can't have any regrets. The girls are willing to play their best tennis, and they're all out there to grind it out for the win."