Girls tennis: Stevenson tied for second after Day 1
Stevenson's girls tennis program is no stranger to second place in the state tournament.
Sure enough, that's where the Patriots sit in Class 2A after Day 1 on Thursday. The Patriots, the state runner-up in each of the last three years, won 6 of their 8 matches in opening-round action at District 211, 214 and 220 courts Thursday. Highland Park is in first place with 14 points, while Stevenson, Hinsdale South and Glenbard West are tied for second with 12 points each. Four-time defending state champ Hinsdale Central (11) and Fremd (10) are fifth and sixth, respectively.
Stevenson senior/5-8 seed Zoe Taylor won both of her matches in two sets, including a 6-3, 6-3 decision over Fremd's Diya Matta.
In doubles, Stevenson junior Alyssa Glaser and senior Bronwyn Heidkamp, a 9-16 seed, survived a 1-6, 6-2, 6-3 battle with Deerfield's Jamie Jones/Danielle Hulsey in the first round. The Patriots' pair then won 6-1, 6-3 over York's Melissa Cartis/Gianna Nikoleit.
Stevenson's 3-4 seed, senior Katherine Harvey and junior Elizabeth Ferdman, captured a pair of two-set wins, including a 6-1, 6-2 decision over Libertyville's freshman duo of Lily VanDixhorn and Amanda Black in the second round.
Stevenson sophomore Athena Kolli dropped her opening-round match to Von Steuben's Steffi Lao 7-5, 6-4, then lost to Palatine's Kanae Kawai 6-2, 6-1.
Warren sophomore Sabrina Mella opened with a 6-3, 6-0 loss to Joliet West's Eileen Carney but rebounded with a pair of back-draw wins by 6-0, 6-0 and 7-5, 6-0 finals, the latter over Fremd's Kyra Emmanouilidis.
Libertyville's VanDixhorn/Black started with a straight-sets win, before losing their next two, the first of which was to Stevenson's Harvey/Ferdman.
Mundelein junior Isabel Alviar lost to Hinsdale South's Agata Mikos 6-2, 6-4 to begin her day but bounced back to capture a 6-7 (7), 6-1, (10-3) win over Glenbrook North's Grace Chatas. Alviar then beat Von Steuben's Lao 6-4, 6-2.
Mundelein's doubles team of sophomore Mikayla Edquiban and freshman Alexis Hyde got a two-set win to start, before dropping back-to-back matches in two sets.
Class 1A
Lakes freshman Megan Heuser, Wauconda senior Sarah Hackman and Antioch senior Kelsey Neville all cruised on Day 1.
Hackman, a 3-4 seed, didn't lose a game in her two matches. Heuser, the No. 2 seed, and 3-4 seed Neville dropped only 1 game each.
Lakes' juniors Kylie Jozwik/Melissa Variny opened with a 6-2, 3-6, 7-5 loss to Geneseo's Madi Miller/Jane Thomas, then dropped a two-set decision.