Girls tennis: Scouting Northwest

MID-SUBURBANBarringtonCoach: Tracy Waters-Miller (13th season)

Outlook: Barrington seeks a 23rd consectutive Mid-Suburban League championship and has six starters returning from the 2015-16 effort. Nidhi Jha leads the team with her racket as the only remaining state qualifier at No. 1 doubles, while seniors Hannah Park (half of the conference champion No. 2 doubles team) and Josie Trautwein/Mia Nguyen return as senior captains. Other returners include defending No. 2 singles conference champ Sara Amano and No. 3 singles conference champ Mounika Gadiraju. Over the summer break, Barrington competed in two summer tour match plays, did drills with the Broncos' team and had a fitness trainer present throughout summer camp. Four-time state qualifier Michelle Linden has moved to her next endeavor, at the University of Wisconsin to play tennis for the Badgers. Other Fillies state qualifiers lost to graduation include three-time state qualifier Anna Donoghue and one-time qualifier Paige Broustis.

Coach's comment: "Great leadership both on and off the courts," Waters-Miller said of what she's looking for from her team. "It's a different dynamic. We will mix up the lineup trying to find our strength."

Buffalo GroveCoach: Kevin Schrammel (12 seasons)

Outlook: Posting an 8-4 record, the Bison enjoyed a bounce-back season in 2015-16, finishing first in the MSL East and second in the MSL overall. Buffalo Grove returned seven positions on an experienced veteran team, with four players playing three years in varsity match play. Sophomore Kina Tamai and junior Dasha Ignatova (third-place finish in MSL at No. 2 singles) missed qualifying for state as a duet by one round last fall. Senior Christina Harisiadis (fourth season varsity), senior Danielle Allaire (runner-up at no. 2 doubles), sophomore Emma Boyd/Allison Schultz (Defending MSL Champs at no. 3 doubles) and junior Jessica Prus (third-place in MSL no. 3 singles) are all returning as well. No. 1 singles and doubles players Anna Sandler and Denny Dimitrova have both moved on to college.

Coach's comment: "(Our expectations are) to win the East, finish as high as possible in conference and qualify for state," Schrammel said. "We schedule a tough group of opponents to start the year in Stevenson, Deerfield, Glenbrook North and New Trier. We feel like playing the best early on prepares us for the conference portion of our schedule. (I am) looking forward to all the invites that we're in. They're always very competitive."

ConantCoach: Dave Koleno (fifth season)

Outlook: The Cougars recorded a 9-7 overall and 3-5 MSL record last season. Five Conant players are returning from the 15-16 team, including one-half of their state qualifying doubles team, senior Gaby Kaminski. Other returning Cougars include junior Nikitha Lakshminarayanan/senior Francesca Bucaro at No. 1 doubles. Gone from the lineup are Katelynn Goron and Kaminski's state qualifier partner Priya Gupta, who have graduated.

Coach's comment: "We had a great turnout for summer camp and have enjoyed a good start to the season," Koleno said. "We are looking to improve on last season's finish in the MSL."

Elk GroveCoach: Kristen Fisher

Outlook: Three-time state qualifier no. 1 singles player senior Jelena Vujanic and sophomore state qualifying doubles team Jovana Vujanic/Lauren Oda all return to the Grenadiers this campaign.

FremdCoach: Lauren O'Donnell (Seventh season)

Outlook: Fremd tied with Palatine for third place in the conference championship and finished with a 6-4 record in dual meets last season. State qualifying junior team Kate Bodensteiner/Julia Smiarowska finished in the top 16 in the state tournament. Also returning to the Vikings is junior singles player Elsie Ha, who registered a 22-15 record. Fremd says goodbye to graduates Amy Chen, Carolyn Kim and Jessica Lim. The Vikings will host two invites in the following two weekends.

Coach's comment: "Summer camp had a great turnout for the program," O'Donnell said. "We offered a skills program as well as tournament play in order to prepare the girls for the season with match readiness and mental toughness."

HerseyCoach: Sharon Meintzer (ninth season)

Outlook: The Huskies had a young team that received a lot of varsity experience in 2015-16. No seniors graduated, and Hersey welcomes back juniors Claire Magnuson (13-9 at singles last year) and Paulina Klis along with seniors Anne Plecki, Diana Matache, Camilla Branas and Susan Ferris. The veteran players will guide a slew of newcomers that include seniors Olivia Redding, Carly Silva, juniors Kendall Krueger and Aamani Bodapati and freshman Sydney Hemenway. The Huskies prepared heavily over the summer as Meintzer utilized all 25 days of camp. The current and incoming players were very receptive to Meintzer's training.

Coach's comment: "It's not about being better than someone else, it's being better than you used to be," Meintzer said. "If the girls can work toward their goals, they will be competitive in the MSL."

Hoffman EstatesCoach: Greg Rouse (18th season)

Outlook: The Hawks completed their season at 3-12. There was a strong turnout for Rouse's summer training. Top returning players for Hoffman include seniors Jane Chun, Emily Fenn, Jalaj Haryani and Ena Rizvic. Coach Rouse specifices the Vernon Hills Invite as one of the key meets on the schedule. He reports that the team is working hard improve their skills, and he'll be looking for all his players to stat positive through the rigors of the season.

PalatineCoach: Jim Lange (second year)

Outlook: The Pirates welcome back the top area player in Asuka Kawai. Kawai, a junior who has considered leaving high school tennis for the professional level, recorded a third-place single finish in last year's state tournament. Defending state singles champ Hinsdale Central player Isabella Lorenzini defeated Kawai 6-3, 6-4 in the semis. Kawai helped Palatine place 13th at state as the team's lone qualifier. Now her sister, Kanae, will join a Pirate team that posted a 14-2 record last year in a season which included the program's first win over crosstown rival Fremd in over 20 years. Other noteworthy achievements included a first-place finish in the Vernon Hills Invite, a second-place showing in the Cary-Grove Invite, first-place honors in the Dundee-Crown invite and two third-place finishes in the MSL and sectional. Other returning players include Ky Oreskin (21-3), Katelynn Spurck (20-4), Anja Jacbosen (21-8) and Julianna Hake (18-10). Kawai and Lorenzini may face off in the Hinsdale Central invite on Sept. 10 as a prequel to a possible rematch with higher stakes in mid-October.

Coach's comment: "(My expectations are) to compete in the Saturday invites," Lange said. "(We hope to) compete for an MSL Title and qualify as many positions as possible for the state tournament."

ProspectCoach: Mike McColaugh (sixth season)

Outlook: Prospect jumped back to the top half of the MSL last year, recording a fifth-place finish in the conference. There is a mixture of veterans and new players taking the courts for the Knights this season with six returning starters and eight underclassmen. Leading the way for the team is a two-time all-conference senior at No. 1 doubles, Hanna Haeberle, along with the no. 2 doubles team (which finished fourth in the MSL at No. 2 doubles), seniors Katie Cooper/Caty Meredith. Other veterans returning are juniors Anna Cooper, Colleen Stanford and Annie Walsh (who earned runner-up state hardware on the 4x100 relay in track for the Knights).

Coach's comment: "If we can find the right chemistry in our doubles lineup and our singles continue to gain experience as the season goes along, we think we will have an opportunity to win a lot of close matches," McColaugh said. "Our girls are eager to prove they can compete with the top teams in the MSL. Our goal is the same every year: To improve throughout the season and compete for the MSL East Division title."

Rolling MeadowsCoach: Jim Gumz (34th season)

Outlook: Rolling Meadows has a split of returning players to newcomers - seven veterans, seven underclassmen. The Mustangs return three of four players that qualified for state from their doubles teams: three-year varsity seniors Stefani Nikolova, Stephanie Peric and MacKenzie Differding. Other returning players include Laura Dacy/Nidhi Thakkar (third in MSL at No. 4 doubles) and Maddie Grant. Gumz enjoyed a great turnout at summer camp, with 43 players trying out for tennis. He looks forward to the team's two hosted Saturday tournaments - the Rolling Meadows Invite (Sept. 17) and the Rolling Meadows Tournament (Oct. 1). The Mustangs will miss the senior leadership of state qualifier Anisha Galla as she graduated at the end of the 2015-16 season.

Coach's comment: "As always, (our goals are to continue to improve throughout the season so we are playing our best tennis during the conference and state series." Gumz said.

SchaumburgCoach: Jacqueline Storm (second season)

Outlook: After a 7-12 season, the sophomore coach has seen a lot of growth in leadership from her returning varsity players, as well as a surplus of new faces on the roster. Key matches on the Saxons' schedule include the Dundee Crown invite on Sept. 10, a dual match against crosstown rival Conant on Sept. 15 and the Lake Park Quad on Sept. 24. Returning players include seniors Hitha Uday (fourth season on varsity), Warisa Siewsrichol, Christina Rossier (both two-year varsity members) and junior Yuka Yagi.

Coach's comment: "We had a great turnout for our coed summer camp," Storm said. "(My expectations are to reach) above a 500 record and to build a team that believes in camaraderie and hardwork."

WheelingCoach: Rick Gutierrez

Outlook: Wheeling will compete in the Elk Grove Invite on Sept. 17 and in key dual matches against Hersey (Sept. 20), Rolling Meadows (Sept. 27) and Prospect (Sept. 29).

WEST SUBURBAN GOLDLeydenCoach: Bob Smith (30th season)

Outlook: The Golden Eagles posted an impressive 9-3 record in dual meets last season. Junior no. 1 singles player Jessica Minkov is a two-time state qualifier for Leyden and is undefeated against the Western Suburban Conference since she arrived with the team. Other returning players include Lupa Barron at no. 2 singles (third in conference at second singles), Daisy Palma (no. 2 doubles), Melissa Salgado (who is now Palma's partner) and Dana Villamena. Leyden will continue to build on their depth at the singles positions. Smith hopes to have the doubles playing more aggressive at the net.

Coach's comment: "(Our goal) is to qualify players to state with the new format and fish in the top of conference," Smith said. "We have a large team this year; over 56 girls are at practice every night. It's great to see so many student-athletes out for tennis."

EAST SUBURBAN CATHOLICSt. ViatorCoach: Amy Ritchie

Outlook: The Lions look to build on their experience they've obtained from the prior season despite losing several veteran players, including No. 1 doubles team in Savannah Ritche and Nicole Panarese. Junior No. 1 singles player Patricia Dizon won 75 percent of her matches in the 2015-16 campaign. Other returning starters include Robyn Teraji and Clara Carlson. Ritchie's team goal is to complete the season at a higher position in the East Suburban Catholic Conference as well as finish with a record above 500.

Coach's comment: "Our early (invites) will be very educational," Ritchie said. "It will give us a great idea of where are strength and weaknesses lie. We also look forward to our conference invite at Benet Academy on Sept. 17. I consider this our conference preview. We have struggled in conference the last couple years. I'm hoping to capitalize on our returning talent for a better showing in 2016."

CENTRAL SUBURBAN NORTHMaine WestCoach: Mike Murin (first season)

Outlook: With a 6-9 record in the 2015-16 campaign, Murin looks to continue progress with key Maine West returnees senior Asia Wicker, Jasmina Rekic, junior Olena Andrushko, sophomores Maja Kozerski and Diane Nguyen. The Warriors welcome a slew of newcomers in junior Gwen Hudson, sophomore Gaby Kic, junior Prachi Patel, sophomores Pavani Jairam, Katelyn Projillo and Abigail Milovancevic. Murin expects a highly competitive performance from the Warriors as soon as they step on the court.

Coach's comment: "I always want to give our best effort against every opponent," Murin said. "(I'm a) new coach trying to get acclimated to the players and the program. All players are giving top effort this early in the season. (They're) already showing improvement from the start of practice."

- Jonathan Jones