Girls tennis: Fine fall forecast for Fremd, MSL singles players
Eight girls tennis teams gathered for the Fremd Invite on Saturday, and the field included four teams from the Mid-Suburban League.
And based on the results, it's looking like a fun season ahead in the MSL - especially for the host Vikings.
Fremd, for the first time since coach Lauren O'Donnell took over the program, won its first meet in an invitational format. The Vikes had 48 points, followed by Libertyville (42) and Jacobs (39).
Fremd had champions in four of the seven positions.
"The girls are ecstatic," O'Donnell said. "It's a good start to the season. We've worked so hard in the off-season and a lot of USTA to be prepared. We're trying to retool the lineup still, but we are still getting a good idea of what we'll be able to do in conference."
Viking No. 1 singles player sophomore Diya Matta was a winner, first defeating her St. Charles East opponent 6-0, 6-0, Conant No. 1 player Gabby Kaminski 6-0, 6-0 and her Jacobs adversary 6-1, 6-1.
Matta is playing her first season for Fremd after playing her freshman season at Elk Grove. The transfer has found a home here at Fremd, and says she learned a lot in the past practicing against three-time Grenadiers state qualifier Jelena Vujanic.
"(Saturday), I had a good warmup with my teammates," Matta said. "It started off well and I just kept it going through my day. Last year really helped me out. I hope I keep practicing the same to keep my game going strong."
Other Vikings champs included Elsie Ha at No. 2 singles and both the No. 2 and 3 doubles teams.
Buffalo Grove finished fifth. The Bison had third-place finishers in senior Christina Harisiadis and the No. 2 doubles duo of senior Allison Schultz and sophomore Emma Boyd.
Schultz/Boyd rolled in their first match against Conant before falling short against Fremd and finally topping their foes from Jacobs 6-2, 6-2 in the third-place match.
Harisiadis topped her Fenwick opponent 6-0, 6-1, dropped the next one to Libertyville but bounced back to best her Jacobs foe 7-6 (8), 6-4.
"We had some close matches, but not enough went our way," said Buffalo Grove coach Kevin Schrammel. "It's early in the season and we want to play our best tennis during conference. I'm not as much concerned right now with our results as I am with our progress."
As Hersey searches for the best combinations at each position, the Huskies found a match as seniors Diana Matache and Olivia Redding were paired at the third doubles position and received some hardware for second place.
Redding/Matache recorded victories over Buffalo Grove (7-5, 6-1) and Jacobs (6-4, 6-7, 10-9), before falling to Fremd 6-4, 6-3.
"I was not expecting our three doubles to medal," said Hersey coach Sharon Meintzer. "But their confidence is building. Everyone's pretty much new besides three returning players, but the camaraderie is great and it seems like they're all starting to believe in themselves. (Saturday) the girls demonstrated that they have self-confidence."
The first set of the day was key for Redding/Matache. They lost their first 4 games to BG before bouncing back to win the set and ultimately the match.
"We started to get momentum after that first set," Matache said. "I started with a losing streak this season, so this was good to get in the right direction. It was really great playing with Olivia."
"In the first match we kept telling each other we could do this," Redding said. "We kept it high, and were able to win. Your partner has a lot to do with any success."
Conant's lone medalist was Gabby Kaminski, who first topped Hersey senior Ana Karapetiani 1-6, 7-5 (10-8), but faltered against Matta in the second round. Kaminski rebounded with a victory over Buffalo Grove's Jessica Prus.
"It was a great day for Gabby,," said Conant coach Dave Koleno. "The MSL is loaded this year at first singles, and she showed a lot of heart coming back in that first match (against Karapetiani)."
"I just wanted to win," Kaminski said. "I was really nervous, because I've never won against (Karapetiani), so it was pretty cool. I have to tell myself it's a brand new set and I got to win six games when I drop the first set. I have to keep the idea that even when I'm down, I'm not down - I'm just starting over."