Corona del Mar handles Tritons

CdM girls tennis vs. San ClementeFourth-seeded Sea Kings beat San Clemente, 15-3, in the second round of the CIF Southern Section Division I playoffs.CORONA DEL MAR-- The Corona del Mar High Sea Kings are back in familiar territory. It’s victory over visiting San Clemente Saturday sends CdM to the CIF Southern Section Division I girls tennis quarterfinals.

The Sea Kings will play at Harvard-Westlake on Tuesday at 2 p.m.

Tuesday’s match will be a return engagement for the Sea Kings. In 2004, CdM beat the Wolverines, 11-7, in the quarterfinals.

Corona del Mar (17-4), the No. 4 seed, set the pace of Saturday’s match early, winning five of the first six sets.

In the second round, the Sea Kings clinched the match by winning all six sets.

Coach Brian Ricker was impressed with the girls’ performance.

“Our doubles teams really played well,” Ricker said. “[The Tritons] stacked their doubles teams with their best players.”

Ricker had praise for the improvement of freshmen doubles partners Lindsay Zotovich and Danielle Kaiden.

“They had two really good victories,” Ricker said. “After their first match, they played better than they have the past few weeks.”

Haley and Miranda Young swept, 6-2, 6-0, 6-0. The junior twins were excited about their execution.

“I felt we struggled a little in the first set, but played complete games in the second and third,” Haley Young said.

Lindsey Norman and Katie McKitterick won two sets, 6-3 and 6-4. In their second match, they fell to San Clemente’s Olivia Muesse and Taylor Mannix.

Muesse and Mannix were the Tritons’ best singles players, but they played together for Saturday’s match.

In singles, the Sea Kings thrived against the Tritons, who had put their best players in doubles matches.

All three singles players swept. Senior Rachel Miller won, 6-1, 6-0, 6-0.

Junior Michelle Atkins swept, 6-0, 6-2, 6-2.

Freshman Flora Lee had one of her best performances of the season winning, 6-1, 6-1, 6-0.

San Clemente Coach John Stephens knew he was going to have a tough match. CdM had previously defeated the Tritons, 15-3, in an Oct. 12 nonleague meeting.

“We knew they were a stronger team,” Stephens said. “Our plan was to just do the best we could.”

The Tritons finish their season at 15-5.

CIF Southern Section

Division I

Corona del Mar 14,

San Clemente 2

Singles -- Miller def. Johnson, 6-1, def. Egan, 6-0, def. Atkinson, 6-0; Atkins (CdM) won, 6-0, 6-2, 6-2; Lee (CdM) won, 6-1, 6-1, 6-0.

Doubles -- H.Young-M.Young def. Muesse-Mannix, 6-2, def. Warren-Baker, 6-0, def. Williams-Torrasco, 6-0; Norman-McKitterick (CdM) lost, 6-4, won, 6-3, 6-2; Kaiden-Zotovich (CdM) won, 6-2, 6-2, lost, 6-4.