North Stars nip Geneva

Every point and every game matter.

That's what coaches always stress to their players, even in tennis, where matches go to whoever wins the most sets.

But the value of focusing on each and every game came into play Saturday at the St. Charles East sectional, as St. Charles North and Geneva went down to the fifth tiebreaker to determine a winner in the team competition.

In the end it might not have been any of the five North Stars that qualified for the state tournament but rather the one who came up just short who made the difference.

St. Charles North coach Tim Matacio's squad won 68.9 percent of the total games in the two day tournament compared to Geneva's 67.7 percent, and the coach was quick to point to Lauren Drawbridge's 7-6 (2), 7-5 loss to Geneva's Carly Ausman in the third round as a difference-maker.

"It was because Lauren Drawbridge had a close match with Ausman that we were able to win this on the tiebreaker," St. Charles North coach Tim Matacio said. "Lauren's a captain and has done a heck of a job this year, and she felt bad that she didn't qualify for state, but she knows that her effort is what got the team over the hump."

Ausman, the only freshman to qualify for the state tournament from this sectional, will be joining Geneva teammate Kayla Fujimoto, who cruised to the sectional singles title.

"(Ausman) turned in a wonderful performance, especially for a freshman," Geneva coach Maureen Weiler said. "What can you say about Kayla, she played really well."

St. Charles North's sister duo of Annemijn and Liselot Koenen claimed the doubles title with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 win over seniors Stefanie Youngberg and Erin Bowman of St. Charles East.

"Stefanie and Erin did a good job of changing things up in the second set," Annemijn Koenen said. "We did a couple of different things in the third set, and once we won the first few games we had the momentum."

Despite the loss Youngberg was upbeat about her team's performance as well as her fourth trip to state.

"We weren't thinking about any individual matches coming into the sectional," said Youngberg, who became the first player in school history to win 100 career matches. "I've been determined to get to state and to help my partner get there, too."

Geneva's Mary Pelling and Krista Panko won the third place match over Jenna Bell and Alecia Natale of St. Charles North, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-2,

"(Pelling) and (Panko) both improved their game a lot throughout the season," Weiler said.

Meanwhile, the third-place singles match provided some tension, on and off the court.

Sarah Amalraj, who overcame a health scare to win the third place match over Ausman. Before the match, the St. Charles North junior began to have difficulty with her breathing.

"We're not sure what caused it, we'll have to get it checked out," Amalraj said. "I had the support of my team, coach, and all the parents and that's what got me through."

Matacio added, "I'm pleased with the way these girls have grown during the season and how supportive they have been of each other."

The host Saints finished third in the overall team competition.