Fairmont seizes league showdown

Chris Yemma

The Sage Hill School girls tennis team faired far better in doubles

play against Fairmont Prep, but came up short in the match, 11-7,

Tuesday at the Balboa Bay Club Racquet Club.

Each doubles team for the Lightning (5-4, 3-1 in league) won two

of three sets, but only No. 2 singles player Stephanie Langer was

able to pull out a singles win in the Academy League matchup,

defeating Anya Walinowicz, 6-1, in the third round.

While the first sets were going on, Lightning Coach A.G. Longoria

said that in order for his team to have a shot at the undefeated

Huskies (8-0, 5-0 in league), he needed some wins in the first

singles matchups, but was counting on more doubles victories.

His prediction was right, as the No. 1 doubles team, Sarah Flynn

and Alle Hsu; No. 2 team of Grace Graham and Alex Williams; and No. 3

squad of Brina Dokage and Rachel Heyler, all had success against the

powerful Huskies.

“We had opportunities,” Longoria said. “We had four match points

in [No. 1 singles player Sarah Geocaris’] match and if we would have

won those, that would have put pressure on them and we would’ve been

pumped.

“We do get another shot at them [Oct. 28], which is good, but next

time we have to play them at their place.”

Down, 9-6, with doubles play completed, Sage Hill needed to win

its final three singles sets to tie the match.

“There’s still mathematically a chance,” Longoria said right

before the final sets started.

But the Huskies mathematically eliminated that chance, as Anya

Walinowicz and Bianca Aboubakare defeated Sage’s singles players.

After the match, Longoria said he wasn’t too hung up on this game

or the next matchup between the two schools.

“We’d certainly like to beat them and be co-champions of the

Academy League,” he said. “But we’d also like to beat them in the

semis or the finals of CIF. So we’re going to see a lot of them and

they’ll see a lot of us.”

Longoria also said that playing this Huskies team numerous times

helps his young Lightning team prepare for the upcoming matches

against Fairmont.

“I have an upperclassman and a freshman playing in each doubles

match, so basically it helps them and me see what we need to do,” he

said.

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Academy League

Fairmont 11, Sage Hill 7

Singles -- Geocaris (SH) lost to B. Aboubakare, 7-6, lost to C. Aboubakare, 6-4, lost to Walinowicz, 6-1; Langer (SG) lost, 6-2, 6-0, won, 6-1; Lee (SH) lost, 6-0, 6-0, 6-1.

Doubles -- Flynn-Hsu (SH) lost to Luzar-Chung, 6-4, def. Patel-Chen, 6-3, def. Jung-Lee 6-1; Graham-Williams (SH) lost, 6-1, won, 6-2; Cummings-Andrews (SH) won, 6-1; Dokage-Heyler (SH) lost, 6-0, won, 6-0, 6-4.

*--*