Batavia in control of WSC
There was nothing unusual about the six tight matches or even the not so close one when Batavia's girls tennis team traveled to Geneva Tuesday.
The Bulldogs won three of four doubles matches, plus the dual's best contest at second singles and finished the day with a 4-2 lead, guaranteeing a win.
"We've had some great matches against Geneva over the years, but this one ranks right up there with the best," Batavia coach Brad Nelson said. "Lots of drama today."
The one remaining match was stopped due to darkness and will be completed on Wednesday.
Kayla Fujimoto won at No. 1 singles over Katie Sawyer, 6-1, 6-1, as she got off to a typically fast start and never let up.
"I felt really good today," Fujimoto said. "Everyone improves and changes each year, and (Sawyer) has definitely gotten better."
Though Fujimoto put that win in the books in a hurry, every other match was defined by long points and closely contested sets.
"This is just what happens between us," Geneva coach Maureen Weiler said. "Kayla always comes through for us, and the other matches are usually tough all the way down the line."
That was especially true of the epic second singles match which saw Geneva's Carly Ausman grab the upper hand over Hannah Potter by winning the first set, 6-3.
"I've played Carly a lot, I knew that she's really consistent," Potter said. "When I lost the first set I had to rethink what I was doing."
Potter responded by playing a more aggressive, attacking brand of tennis, and won the next two sets, 6-2, 7-5.
"I started hitting to her weaker side and getting her to move around," Potter said.
Potter's win was Batavia's fourth overall, clinching the team competition.
"I had no idea, and I'm kind of glad I didn't know," Potter said.
Three Batavia wins on the doubles side had set the stage for Potter's dramatic finish, beginning with Michelle Sapyta and Kaitlin Mills' 6-3, 7-6 (7-0) victory over Alexa Rogers and Jamie Potts.
"I was so proud of that doubles team," Nelson said. "They've battled through some adversity, and worked hard together all summer."
The second doubles match looked like it might be Batavia's only easy win after Mallory Ramp and Tamar Norville won their first set against Claire Chlasta and Annie Tourte, 6-2.
"Both of us stayed aggressive in that first set, and it went very well," Ramp said
But things got tighter in the second set, and the Bulldogs had to claw to a 7-6 (7-5) win.
"We laid back a little bit in the second set, but then we stepped it up at the end," Norville said.
The Vikings' lone doubles win came at No. 3, where Abby Baumer and Stephanie Michaels gutted out a tense three-setter over Lauren Berezynski and Erika Connolly, 4-6, 7-5, 7-5.
Batavia closed out its doubles dominance with a 7-5, 6-4 win or Kim Jernstad and Brooke Svitak over Kirby Arloff and Val Salesky at No. 4.
The win puts the Bulldogs in the driver's seat for the Western Sun Conference title as their record improved to 7-0, and 16-2-1 overall. The Vikings, who will be looking to avenge Tuesday's loss in the conference tournament, are now 5-1 in the Western Sun, and 9-6 overall.