SOUTHERN SECTION

Friday, Dec. 3

SOUTHERN SECTION INDIVIDUAL TOURNAMENT

Maggie Mello, who missed the Southern Section individual tournament last season because of an injury, made the most of a chance to play in this year’s event.

The third-seeded sophomore from Mission Viejo rallied from a first-set deficit and then staved off a comeback attempt by top-seeded senior Nazlie Ghazal of Temecula Chaparral to claim the Southern Section singles championship with a 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 victory in the final match Friday at SeaCliff Country Club in Huntington Beach.

“I really wanted this,” said Mello. “It was my match. I feel like I was supposed to be here.”Mello’s title, the first by a Mission Viejo player, completed her successful comeback from a torn ligament in her right ankle that forced her to miss most of last year, including all of the postseason.

“This was the goal,” Diablo Coach Brent Pillsbury said. “This year, she wanted to make sure she made a good go of it.”Mello was down a break at 1-4 in the first set before rebounding to win with the help of some effective serving and a powerful, picturesque forehand. She also had a match point at 5-4 in the second set but made three consecutive unforced errors to allow Ghazal to pull into a tie and then to win the last two games to force a third set.

Mello won the first four games and had a 5-1 lead in the third, but again had to hold off Ghazal, a left-hander who will play at Northwestern next year.

North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake seniors Amber Harper and Jennifer Kaswick completed a near-perfect season by winning an all-Mission League doubles final, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4), over Sherman Oaks Notre Dame’s Erynne and Aimee Oki.

Harper and Kaswick, who went 54-2 in sets this year, overcame some poor serving to claim the title after taking a 4-1 advantage in the third-set tiebreaker and then hanging on after the Notre Dame sisters tied it at 4-4.

--Lauren Peterson

Championship

SINGLES

Maggie Mello, Mission Viejo d. Nazlie Ghazal, Chaparral, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4.

DOUBLES

Amber Harper-Jennifer Kaswick, Harvard-Westlake d. Erynne Oki-Aimee Oki, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4).

Championship Semifinals

SINGLES

Nazlie Ghazal, Chaparral, d. Ally Krasnopolsky, Campbell Hall, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2; Maggie Mello, Mission Viejo d. Hilary Barte, Harvard-Westlake, 6-3, 6-1.

DOUBLES

Amber Harper-Jennifer Kaswick, Harvard-Westlake d. Jill Damion-Ali Walters, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4; Erynne Oki-Aimee Oki, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame d. Alison Ramos-Samantha Nadres, Troy, 6-3, 6-4.

Thursday, Dec. 2

SOUTHERN SECTION INDIVIDUAL TOURNAMENT
At SeaCliff Country Club, Huntington Beach and Mesa Verde Country Club, Costa Mesa

Championship Quarterfinals

SINGLES

Nazlie Ghazal, Chaparral d. McCall Jones, Tesoro, 6-4, 6-4; Ally Krasnopolsky, Campbell Hall d. Tania Mahtani, Peninsula, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-2.
Maggie Mello, Mission Viejo d. Mykala Hedberg, Oxnard, 6-3, 6-1; Hilary Barte, Harvard-Westlake d. Clare Fermin, Troy, 6-3, 6-0.

DOUBLES

Jill Damion-Ali Walters, Corona del Mar d. Tessa Tran-Anna Litovsky, Beverly Hills, 6-4, 6-3; Amber Harper-Jennifer Kaswick, Harvard-Westlake d. Emma Bronowicki-Katie Debowski, Dana Hills, 6-2, 6-1.

Alison Ramos-Samantha Nadres, Troy d. Brooke Robertson-Kristin Teufel, Santa Barbara, 6-2, 6-2; Erynne Oki-Aimee Oki, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame d. Emily Aston-Stephanie Chen, Peninsula, 6-3, 6-1.

Fourth Round (Round of 16)

SINGLES

Nazlie Ghazal, Chaparral, d. Michelle Murphy, Mater Dei, 6-1, 7-6 (3); McCall Jones, Tesoro, d. Lyndsay Kinstler, Connelly, 7-5, 6-1; Tania Mahtani, Peninsula d. Kristen McVitty, Calabasas, 6-3, 6-3; Ally Krasnopolsky, Campbell Hall d. Carissa Aboubakare, Fairmont Prep, 6-4, 7-6 (6).
Maggie Mello, Mission Viejo d. Katarina Reveche, Campbell Hall, 7-5, 3-2 (retired, injury); Mykala Hedberg, Oxnard d. Kelly Stewart, Malibu, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (4); Clare Fermin, Troy d. Claire Rietsch, Laguna Beach, 2-6, 7-5, 6-2; Hilary Barte, Harvard-Westlake, d. Brittany Blalock, Palm Desert, 6-2, 6-1.

DOUBLES

Jill Damion-Ali Walters, Corona del Mar d. Jennifer Chow-Erica Liao, Troy, 6-2, 6-2; Tessa Tran-Anna Litovsky, Beverly Hills d. Brittney Harper-Eileen Chang, Calabasas, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2; Emma Bronowicki-Katie Debowksi, Dana Hills d. Paige Weber-Tiffany Liu, Peninsula, 3-6, 7-5, 6-2; Amber Harper-Jennifer Kaswick, Harvard-Westlake, d. Stephanie Marlis-Amelia Rose, Brentwood, 6-3, 6-0.
Alison Ramos-Samantha Nadres, Troy, d. Laura Aragon-Claudia Vasquez, Redlands, 6-1, 6-1; Brooke Robertson-Kristin Teufel, Santa Barbara d. Alison Wagner-Michelle Sulahian, Campbell Hall, 6-3, 6-2; Erynne Oki-Aimee Oki, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, d. Brandy Andrews-Alyssa Nafarrete, Los Alamitos, 6-0, 6-3; Emily Aston-Stephanie Chen, Peninsula d. Dafina Amin-Yasmin Amin, Palm Springs, 6-3, 6-3.