Sweet victory as Minor defeats McDonald

Carmel sophomore Jasmine Minor and Mundelein junior Hanne MacDonald first met each other on a tennis court as juniors.

It was so long ago that if you combined their ages, they would still be unable to get a driver's license.

They squared off for the first time in a high school match Tuesday on Minor's 15th birthday, and Minor defeated MacDonald 6-3, 6-3 at No. 1 singles.

Carmel (2-0) went on to win six of the seven matches. Mundelein dropped to 1-1.

Afterward, Minor and her teammates celebrated by chowing down on birthday cake. Naturally, the cake was designed like a tennis court.

Minor did not play high school tennis as a freshman, focusing instead on United States Tennis Association and International Tennis Federation Tournaments. She has been ranked as high as No. 15 nationally in the 16s.

Minor's older sister, Kristina, is a familiar name to Carmel tennis fans. She is set to begin her sophomore season at the University of Illinois.

Minor defeated MacDonald 6-1, 6-0 when they played earlier this summer in the Midwest Closed.

"She's improved a lot," Minor said. "I don't like to play a lot of long points, and against her you have to be patient. The way she runs down balls, you have to expect the ball to come back."

Minor's big serve and the pace of her ground strokes prevented MacDonald from dictating the action.

"I had to be defensive because of her ball speed," MacDonald said. "I focused on centering the ball and keeping the point alive."

MacDonald's mental toughness helped her win two additional games late in the second set.

"The wind was a factor and I'm pretty good at dealing with it," she said. "I try to keep a cool head and not show any emotion."

MacDonald's younger sister, Ali, also kept a cool head. The freshman scored Mundelein's lone victory by winning her No. 2 singles match 6-3, 6-2.

"I kept the ball in play and was happy with my consistency," Ali MacDonald said.

Added Mundelein coach Jim Drier: "That (win) shows you how good she is. She's not intimidated at all."

Carmel seniors Lauren Aguilar and Michelle Kunkler made a nice comeback in their No. 1 doubles match against Karlie Alms and Paige Parola. After losing the first set in a tiebreaker 6-7 (4), the duo responded by taking the next two sets 7-5, 6-1.

Aguilar credited Kunkler with helping her relax after the first set. The tiebreaker ended when Aguilar hit a backhand into the net.

"She told me were starting over," Aguilar said. "We came out with a new mindset."

Aguilar said the third set was closer than the score would indicate.

"The games were tough," she said. "We were able to win the important points."