Girls tennis: Mixed results for Northwest suburbs players at state
It wasn't a gold medal day for the best players from the Mid-Suburban League in the opening round of the girls state tennis tournament hosted by Buffalo Grove and played at various MSL schools Thursday.
Conference singles champion Madeline Hills of Barrington lost in the second round of the championship bracket while doubles champions Gracie Ha and Kellie Ha of Fremd were knocked out in the third round. They will all continue to compete Friday in the consolation bracket.
Hills got off to a great start, rolling over Champaign Centennial's Angela Xu 6-0, 6-0. Hills then had a roller coaster type match with York's Gianna Nikoleit and lost 1-6, 6-2, 10-6. She then beat Deerfield's Allison Lee 6-1, 2-6, 10-5 before her next match with Normal's Grace Walls was suspended.
"There are just real good players in this tournament," said Hills, who as a freshman was making her first appearance at the state finals.
"It is really challenging. I am looking forward to the rest of the matches."
Hills' teammates did not fair as well.
Nayana Ramesh lost both of her singles matches. She lost to Deerfield's Annie Wang 7-6, 6-1 and was eliminated by Fremd's Sonal Matta 6-3, 6-4.
Barrington's doubles team of Niyanthi Puliyala and Amani Alvi won their first match against Lockport 6-2, 6-3. But they then lost to Glenbard West 6-3, 6-3 and then were eliminated in the consolation bracket by Batavia 6-3, 6-1.
The Fillies' Sam Kim and Sofia Hutchison also won their first match, beating Morton 6-0, 6-1. After losing to Highland Park 6-1, 6-2, they won their consolation match against Stevenson 6-3, 2-6, 10-6. However Kim and Hutchison were eliminated by Glenbard West 6-2, 6-1.
The Ha sisters opened a bit stronger. They knocked off a team from Sandburg 6-2, 6-1 and a duo from Mundelein 6-1, 6-1.
They then lost the first set to Hinsdale Central's Zoe Limparis and Katie Dollens 6-1 before rallying for a 6-0 win in the second set before dropping the final set 6-2.
"It was really great match," Kelly Ha said. "The tennis was amazing and the points were so long. We do build each other up during the match and that helps."
Gracie Ha said that she draws energy from her sister.
"I knew going into the second set we couldn't give up," Kelli Ha said. "Each other's energy keeps me positive on the court."
The Ha sisters are the only Fremd competitors remaining.
Jane Bodensteiner and Matta each lost their opening match in singles competition. They then each won their consolation round opener before dropping their second consolation match and being eliminated.
The Vikings' other doubles team of Valentina Cordero and April Wu lost both of their matches and were eliminated.
"We had some ups and downs today," Fremd coach Scott Newmark said. "We had five of our six players that never competed in this tournament playing for us. Getting new experiences is part of it. It was big for us to win the sectional, but we are playing against the best players in state."
Elk Grove's Payton Oda won both of her matches and is still alive in the winner's bracket. Oda beat Matea Valley's Meera Baird 6-2, 3-6, 10-6. She then beat Sandburg's Jocelyn Canellis 6-2, 6-3. Her third round match with Margaret Forkner of Libertyville was suspended due to darkness.
Conant's doubles team of Simren Mahajan and Chetana Cheruvu is also still alive in the competition. After losing to Regina Lee and Molly Grace of Maine South, they beat a team from Hononegah 6-4, 6-3 and outlasted Downers Grove South 4-6, 6-4, 10-8. They will play Lincoln-Way East on Friday.
After Lee and Grace from Maine South beat Mahajan and Cheruvu in the opening round, they dropped their next two matches, losing to Lake Forest 6-2, 6-1 and eliminated by Neuqua Valley 6-4, 7-5
In Class 1A, St. Viator has its qualifiers still alive in the competition.
Maia Nowicki won her opening match 6-0, 6-1 against Belleville Althoff's Natalie Cohn. Nowicki than ran into a buzz saw from Chicago Latin, losing 6-0, 6-0 to Lucy Mitchell. Nowicki beat Isabella Domenech from Vernon Hills 6-1, 6-1 and then had her match with Bloomington's Mariel Runyon suspended.
Tess McLaughlin and Sara Schultz lost their doubles opener to Boylan 7-6, 6-1. The pair has come back strong in the consolation bracket beating St. Laurence 6-0, 6-1 and Sterling 6-4, 1-6, 10-4. They were in a match with Centralia when play was suspended.