Batavia wins UEC River title
Batavia dominated the girls tennis regular season in the Upstate Eight's River Division, so it came as little surprise that they did the same in Saturday's final matches of the conference tournament.
The Bulldogs finished in the top three in each bracket, winning two first place matches, three seconds and two thirds, to claim their first conference title since 2005.
“It's been a great season and this was a terrific way to end the conference season, Batavia coach Brad Nelson said. “This was our goal coming in, and these girls worked hard, they're a tight knit unit, and they were able to accomplish it.
Despite Batavia's dominance, St. Charles North, St. Charles East, and Geneva also had reasons to be pleased with the outcome.
The North Stars, who finished second overall, boasted three conference champs, led by Liselot Koenen's 6-1, 6-1 win over Hannah Potter at No. 1 doubles.
“As a senior, I see this more as a leadership role for me now, Koenen said. “I have more expectations now to win a championship, so that makes it a little bit sweeter that I got it.
It was Koenen's second straight Upstate Eight No. 1 singles title. Just the latest achievement for a player who has made winning seem routine.
“Liselot is amazing, St. Charles North coach Eve Tubman said. “She did exactly what she set out to do, and she made it look easy.
St. Charles East, who hosted the tournament and finished third overall, watched Erin Bowman and Claire Hafner win the top doubles championship by beating Batavia's Kaitlyn Mills and Jenny Mizikar, 6-3, 6-3.
“We were a little nervous at first, but we'd beaten Batavia earlier this season, so we were confident that we could pull it out, Hafner said.
Bowman and Hafner became a doubles team for the first time this year, which meant they had to work at playing together and getting to know one another on the court.
“We were pretty confident coming into this, Bowman said. “We felt good about the way we've been playing.
Batavia's Miranda Grizaffi improved to 26-0 on the season by beating St. Charles East's Catey Elster, 6-2, 6-1 in the No. 2 singles final. It was another steady, low-error performance for the sophomore.
“Miranda has gotten better each time she's been out on the court, and she was outstanding this weekend, Nelson said. “She's a very smart player who does a great job of figuring out her opponent.
Freshman Liza Fruendt turned in a tidy effort and claimed the third singles title for Batavia by beating St. Charles North's Jessica Szymanski, 6-2, 6-2.
“Liza is a great athlete who has a good feel for the game, and she understands what she needs to do to get the win, Nelson said.
Despite a couple of disappointing losses, the North Stars did win the most individual titles (3). Ashley Randazzo and Faith Ohlerking beat Batavia's Tamar Norville and Margerite Mallory 7-5, 6-4 at No. 2 doubles, and Hayley Goldsworthy and Kelly Mehan out battled Geneva's Kirby Arloff and Emily Malecha 7-5, 5-7, 6-1 at third.
“We were a little behind the eight ball coming in, but overall we did pretty well today, Tubman said.
The fourth doubles final was one of the weekend's best matches, as St. Charles East's Haydyn Jones and Kelsie Robertson overcame a first set loss to outlast Geneva's Allison Donahue and Nora Burkhardt, 5-7, 6-3, 6-4. The freshman duo had won their semifinal match in similar fashion, winning a three-setter against St. Charles North.
“They're amazingly tough, and show a lot of maturity, St. Charles East coach Sena Drawer said. “Each and every one of our players worked so hard yesterday and today.
Batavia finished the tournament with 73 team points, St. Charles North had 64, St. Charles East 57.
“Anything can happened in a tournament, and you can't assume that just because you come into it as the top team that it's going to be a walk in the park, Nelson said. “But we knew that if we played to our seeds we'd win this.
“We didn't get as many individual championships as we would've like, but we got the points to do what we needed to.
Geneva finished fourth overall with 52 points, as Claire Chlasta and Carly Ausman won the third match at No. 1 doubles.
“I've got to tip my hat to Batavia, Geneva coach Maureen Weiler said. “They have a good, solid team, and they've played well all season.