Tiger Tennis Team In Familiar Situation
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Anthony [email protected]
Following their 5-0 win over the Churubusco Eagles in the first round of the Wawasee Sectional Thursday, the Tigers will look to win their ninth-straight girls tennis sectional Saturday against the Wawasee Warriors, a 3-2 victor over the Tippecanoe Valley Vikings.[[In-content Ad]]"We beat them in the regular season 5-0, but they're a good team," Warsaw coach Rick Orban said of Wawasee. "Every team improves. If we don't take this match seriously, they can beat us. You can bet that (Friday) and Saturday morning coming here, we'll talk about staying focused and playing to your potential and not your opponent's potential."
Wawasee and Warsaw will meet in Saturday's 10 a.m. sectional championship.
Before getting the chance to play in the championship, Warsaw first breezed to four easy wins in the opening round, mixed with a tight, two-set victory.
In the win, Alli Tucker won 6-0, 6-1 at No. 2 singles, Audrey Petro won 6-0, 6-0 at No. 3 singles, the No. 1 doubles team of Erin Coppes and Lauren Sciarra came out on top 6-0, 6-0 and the No. 2 doubles team of Jennifer Lokotar and Stefani Davis dropped just one set in a 6-1, 6-0 win, the Tigers proved they were ready to play against the Eagles, who fell to 2-11 on the year.
"We've had a problem with staying focused this year," Orban said of his 6-6 team. "I'm just thrilled with the way they stayed focused, and thrilled with the way they took it seriously enough, and got off the courts without injuries."
With all the girls wrapping their matches up quickly, they watched as freshman teammate Erika White got herself into quite a battle at No. 1 singles.
After taking the first set 6-4, White fell behind Churubusco senior Lauren May 5-4 in the second. On the verge of going into a third set, White took the next two sets, forcing a tiebreaker, which she won 7-3, winning the match 6-4, 7-6 (7-3).
"She is a freshman, but she's been playing juniors and seniors all year long," Orban said about White. "I told her here at the end, 'You're gonna go out there and you're gonna break her. You're gonna go into a tiebreak, and you're gonna win it.' She did exactly what I wanted."
On the other side of the Wawasee Tennis Complex, the Warriors (2-12) and Vikings (3-9) had a much closer match.
"We played O.K., we really did," Valley coach Jack Shambaugh said after his team's 3-2 defeat. "We knew it was going to be a tough match, because we'd looked at their record and saw the teams they'd already played. So we figured it was going to come down to No. 3 singles, and their No. 3 player played a real good match."
On No. 3 singles court, Wawasee's Caitlin Conley defeated Danae Norris 6-2, 6-3, helping her team win its second match in as many attempts.
After beginning the season 0-12, Wawasee picked up its first win Tuesday against Whitko, 3-2.
"It lets me know that our (Northern Lakes Conference) schedule, or schools we play in the area, is quite a bit tougher than the schools we play in some other conferences," Wawasee coach Roger Brady said. "I don't really know what Whitko did in (the Three Rivers Conference) or what Tippy Valley did in (the TRC), but it just lets you know that the schedule you play makes you better.
"We told the girls about halfway through the season, 'Girls, you're gonna win a match this year.'," Brady added. "Of course, it came down to the last match. I told them that Whitko is like Tippy Valley, and they're very similiar. That gave them a lot of confidence coming in."
Wawasee's other wins at the sectional came on the doubles courts, where Abby Cox and Kindra Wright defeated Lindsay Cox and Susy Contreras 6-0, 6-1 and the No. 2 duo of Rachael Larson and Haley Windle swept Ann Jackson and Corinna Casper 6-0, 6-0.
Valley's Brooke Roberts picked up a win for her team at No. 2 singles, getting past Alyssa Brown with a 6-1, 6-4 win. The Vikings' other victory came at No. 1 singles, as Krista Hamilton punched her ticket to next week's Northridge Regional, where she'll participate in the individual portion of the postseason after her 6-4, 6-2 win over Brooke Kaiser.
"She played really well tonight," Shambaugh said about Hamilton. "She drove her girl off the court all night long, and that's what you want - deep, penetrating ground strokes. Those are hard to hit back.
"We're excited for her," he added. "With her being a senior, it's nice to see her move on."
Any No. 1 singles or doubles duo can move on in the tournament as long as she stays undefeated, but for Orban, it's the team he's looking to keep alive.
"At the beginning of the season, with all these freshmen and sophomores, you're just never sure," Orban said, referring to his two freshmen and two sophomores. "It's been a long season, but every match and every practice, they've gotten better. When we got off the bus today, I told them, 'You're not freshmen anymore. You're sophomores or juniors.' I think they took it to heart."
Warsaw may be looking to continue its domination of the sectional, but Wawasee is hoping to pull off the upset.
"Everybody knows tomorrow's gonna be a completely different story," Brady said about the championship match. "The thing with this team is, when they're playing people that are better, they always step their game up.
"Warsaw will make us play as well as we can play," he added. "They beat us 5-0, and I think they beat us a couple times at the NLC match. But every time you put the racket in the hand and put the shoes on, anything can happen. So, we're gonna come to play."
WARSAW 5, CHURUBUSCO 0
Singles
No. 1 - Erika White (W) def. Lauren May 6-4, 7-6 (7-3)
No. 2 - Alli Tucker (W) def. Alyssa Carpenter 6-0, 6-1
No. 3 - Audrey Petro (W) def. Allison Norris 6-0, 6-0
Doubles
No. 1 - Erin Coppes/Lauren Sciarra (W) def. Hannah Dodson/Marla Martinez 6-0, 6-0
No. 2 - Jennifer Lokotar/Stefani Davis (W) def. Elizabeth Fricks/Alysa Holloway 6-1, 6-0
Records: Warsaw 6-6, Churubusco 2-11
WAWASEE 3, TIPPECANOE VALLEY 2
Singles
No. 1 - Krista Hamilton (TV) def. Brooke Kaiser 6-4, 6-2
No. 2 - Brooke Roberts (TV) def. Alyssa Brown 6-1, 6-4
No. 3 - Caitlin Conley (W) def. Danae Norris 6-2, 6-3
Doubles
No. 1 - Abby Cox/Kindra Wright (W) def. Lindsay Cox/Susy Contreras 6-0, 6-1
No. 2 - Rachael Larson/Haley Windle (W) def. Ann Jackson/Corinna Casper 6-0, 6-0
Records: Wawasee 2-12, Tippy Valley 3-9
Following their 5-0 win over the Churubusco Eagles in the first round of the Wawasee Sectional Thursday, the Tigers will look to win their ninth-straight girls tennis sectional Saturday against the Wawasee Warriors, a 3-2 victor over the Tippecanoe Valley Vikings.[[In-content Ad]]"We beat them in the regular season 5-0, but they're a good team," Warsaw coach Rick Orban said of Wawasee. "Every team improves. If we don't take this match seriously, they can beat us. You can bet that (Friday) and Saturday morning coming here, we'll talk about staying focused and playing to your potential and not your opponent's potential."
Wawasee and Warsaw will meet in Saturday's 10 a.m. sectional championship.
Before getting the chance to play in the championship, Warsaw first breezed to four easy wins in the opening round, mixed with a tight, two-set victory.
In the win, Alli Tucker won 6-0, 6-1 at No. 2 singles, Audrey Petro won 6-0, 6-0 at No. 3 singles, the No. 1 doubles team of Erin Coppes and Lauren Sciarra came out on top 6-0, 6-0 and the No. 2 doubles team of Jennifer Lokotar and Stefani Davis dropped just one set in a 6-1, 6-0 win, the Tigers proved they were ready to play against the Eagles, who fell to 2-11 on the year.
"We've had a problem with staying focused this year," Orban said of his 6-6 team. "I'm just thrilled with the way they stayed focused, and thrilled with the way they took it seriously enough, and got off the courts without injuries."
With all the girls wrapping their matches up quickly, they watched as freshman teammate Erika White got herself into quite a battle at No. 1 singles.
After taking the first set 6-4, White fell behind Churubusco senior Lauren May 5-4 in the second. On the verge of going into a third set, White took the next two sets, forcing a tiebreaker, which she won 7-3, winning the match 6-4, 7-6 (7-3).
"She is a freshman, but she's been playing juniors and seniors all year long," Orban said about White. "I told her here at the end, 'You're gonna go out there and you're gonna break her. You're gonna go into a tiebreak, and you're gonna win it.' She did exactly what I wanted."
On the other side of the Wawasee Tennis Complex, the Warriors (2-12) and Vikings (3-9) had a much closer match.
"We played O.K., we really did," Valley coach Jack Shambaugh said after his team's 3-2 defeat. "We knew it was going to be a tough match, because we'd looked at their record and saw the teams they'd already played. So we figured it was going to come down to No. 3 singles, and their No. 3 player played a real good match."
On No. 3 singles court, Wawasee's Caitlin Conley defeated Danae Norris 6-2, 6-3, helping her team win its second match in as many attempts.
After beginning the season 0-12, Wawasee picked up its first win Tuesday against Whitko, 3-2.
"It lets me know that our (Northern Lakes Conference) schedule, or schools we play in the area, is quite a bit tougher than the schools we play in some other conferences," Wawasee coach Roger Brady said. "I don't really know what Whitko did in (the Three Rivers Conference) or what Tippy Valley did in (the TRC), but it just lets you know that the schedule you play makes you better.
"We told the girls about halfway through the season, 'Girls, you're gonna win a match this year.'," Brady added. "Of course, it came down to the last match. I told them that Whitko is like Tippy Valley, and they're very similiar. That gave them a lot of confidence coming in."
Wawasee's other wins at the sectional came on the doubles courts, where Abby Cox and Kindra Wright defeated Lindsay Cox and Susy Contreras 6-0, 6-1 and the No. 2 duo of Rachael Larson and Haley Windle swept Ann Jackson and Corinna Casper 6-0, 6-0.
Valley's Brooke Roberts picked up a win for her team at No. 2 singles, getting past Alyssa Brown with a 6-1, 6-4 win. The Vikings' other victory came at No. 1 singles, as Krista Hamilton punched her ticket to next week's Northridge Regional, where she'll participate in the individual portion of the postseason after her 6-4, 6-2 win over Brooke Kaiser.
"She played really well tonight," Shambaugh said about Hamilton. "She drove her girl off the court all night long, and that's what you want - deep, penetrating ground strokes. Those are hard to hit back.
"We're excited for her," he added. "With her being a senior, it's nice to see her move on."
Any No. 1 singles or doubles duo can move on in the tournament as long as she stays undefeated, but for Orban, it's the team he's looking to keep alive.
"At the beginning of the season, with all these freshmen and sophomores, you're just never sure," Orban said, referring to his two freshmen and two sophomores. "It's been a long season, but every match and every practice, they've gotten better. When we got off the bus today, I told them, 'You're not freshmen anymore. You're sophomores or juniors.' I think they took it to heart."
Warsaw may be looking to continue its domination of the sectional, but Wawasee is hoping to pull off the upset.
"Everybody knows tomorrow's gonna be a completely different story," Brady said about the championship match. "The thing with this team is, when they're playing people that are better, they always step their game up.
"Warsaw will make us play as well as we can play," he added. "They beat us 5-0, and I think they beat us a couple times at the NLC match. But every time you put the racket in the hand and put the shoes on, anything can happen. So, we're gonna come to play."
WARSAW 5, CHURUBUSCO 0
Singles
No. 1 - Erika White (W) def. Lauren May 6-4, 7-6 (7-3)
No. 2 - Alli Tucker (W) def. Alyssa Carpenter 6-0, 6-1
No. 3 - Audrey Petro (W) def. Allison Norris 6-0, 6-0
Doubles
No. 1 - Erin Coppes/Lauren Sciarra (W) def. Hannah Dodson/Marla Martinez 6-0, 6-0
No. 2 - Jennifer Lokotar/Stefani Davis (W) def. Elizabeth Fricks/Alysa Holloway 6-1, 6-0
Records: Warsaw 6-6, Churubusco 2-11
WAWASEE 3, TIPPECANOE VALLEY 2
Singles
No. 1 - Krista Hamilton (TV) def. Brooke Kaiser 6-4, 6-2
No. 2 - Brooke Roberts (TV) def. Alyssa Brown 6-1, 6-4
No. 3 - Caitlin Conley (W) def. Danae Norris 6-2, 6-3
Doubles
No. 1 - Abby Cox/Kindra Wright (W) def. Lindsay Cox/Susy Contreras 6-0, 6-1
No. 2 - Rachael Larson/Haley Windle (W) def. Ann Jackson/Corinna Casper 6-0, 6-0
Records: Wawasee 2-12, Tippy Valley 3-9
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