Girls tennis: Palatine's Kawai roars into singles state semifinals

Day two of the girls tennis state tournament held at Buffalo Grove and 10 other Mid-Suburban League locations commenced early Friday morning.

Of the league's 17 players that earned state tournament berths, just one player remains in the front draw: Palatine's Asuka Kawai.

The Pirates senior, who has verbally committed to play for the Illini next year, breezed in her two Thursday matches. It got a little tougher Friday, but Kawai still won both her matches in straight sets.

She started with a win over Deerfield's Emily Casati (6-1, 6-1), then earned a spot in the Class 2A semifinals by besting Lyons' Jelly Bozovic (6-1, 6-4).

Kawai seemed to be firing on all cylinders in the first set of the quarterfinals against Bozovic, but the Lyons senior continued to raise her game. In the second set, it was tied 4-4 at one point.

"When you get to this level and the kind of caliber player Jelly is, you can't take anything for granted," said Palatine coach Jim Lange. "She had a lot of strong forehands and (Bozovic) had one of the best backhands I've seen all year."

After multiple traded deuces in the second set, the No. 2-seeded Kawai watched a ball hit by Bozovic slide out. Kawai gave the Palatine faithful a roar and a fist pump as she realized she'd advanced to the state semifinals for a second straight time.

"I was definitely hitting (well) in the first set, but I knew she would come back for sure," Kawai said. "I wasn't mentally prepared and (Bozovic) was overpowering me with the serve. It was definitely helpful that my team was cheering in the back. I'm representing my school. I have to be playing my best to get pumped. It's exciting."

The future Illini player next faces Evanston's Anastasia Goncharova - against whom Kawai had an epic match on Aug. 31. Kawai was able to mount a comeback victory after a three-hour tussle, 6-7 (7-4), 6-4, 7-5.

A victory over Goncharova would put Kawai in the singles state title match.

"I can't go in thinking I can win the whole thing," Kawai said. "I don't know what to expect from anyone. Anything can happen in tennis. It's how you dedicate yourself and perform. I just have to play my game."

Other area players remaining in the backdraw of the tournament include Elk Grove's Jelena Vujanic, and in doubles Fremd's Kate Bodensteiner/Julia Smiarowska.

Bodensteiner/Smiarowska ran into the top-seeded doubles team from Glenbrook North, sisters Colette and Catherine O'Regan, and fell 6-3, 6-2.

But the Fremd duo battled back in the backdraw and has a chance to finish in the top eight in the state with a win in Saturday's match against Hinsdale Central's Carolyn Ahn/Mira Amin. The Vikings tandem recorded a 6-1, 6-3 win over Lyons Joie Reisch/Mattigan Kelly and got a hard-fought victory against Whitney Young's Camryn Salter and Kara Barclay 2-6, 7-5, 10-6.

Vujanic's championship bracket run ended when she met up with the top seed in Class 2A, Michelle Bacalla of Niles North. The Grenadiers senior had previously battled hard to top Hinsdale South's Agata Mikos 6-3, 7-6 (7-2).

In the quarterfinals, Vujanic stayed with Bacalla and actually led in the first set 4-3 before Bacalla won three straight games to take the first set. In the second set, Vujanic started off slowly but fought back to tie 3-3. Bacalla ultimately pieced together consecutive wins again to send Vujanic to the backdraw with a 6-4, 6-3 decision.

"I played my hardest," Vujanic said. "(Bacalla) is really tough and she's really consistent. I wasn't focused (in the second set), but I came back. I need to play better mentally and hit better with my ground strokes."

Vujanic will play Kenwood's Sloane Williams at Hersey in the consolation quarterfinals Saturday.

Other area players who bowed out in Friday's state tournament included Fremd's Diya Matta, Barrington's Nidhi Jha/Sara Amano, and in 1A, St. Viator's Patricia Dizon.

"It was really nerve-wracking," Amano said when asked about her first state tournament berth. "I couldn't get my feet moving smooth, but it helps when you're playing with your partner. It was exciting."

"These weekend tournaments really prepare us for the tough, long and cold matches," Jha said. "This is our last time this year to play and we played the best we have played this entire year, and that's all you can ask for."

The front and backdraw will continue Saturday. Kawai will play her semifinal at Buffalo Grove at 9 a.m., while Vujanic and Bodensteiner/Smiarowska continue their tournament at Hersey at 8 a.m.