Pipeline to success: Clarkston using deep lineup to net title dreams

PACK OF WOLVES: Clarkston junior Gabrielle Spindler is just one of many highly-touted players in the Wolves' lineup this season. Staff Photo | Dan Stickradt

BY DAN STICKRADT

SENIOR EDITOR

dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com

CLARKSTON — A decade ago, Clarkston’s girls tennis program began to turn a corner.

Just an average program throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the Wolves benefited from the arrival of some highly-touted tennis players.

Today, much like a pipeline from a fruitful well, those players just keep coming — and Clarkston has become a pernnialtop-10 powerhouse.

The Wolves, the second ranked team in Division 1, are in the midst of their very best season in school history.

Following Tuesday’s 6-2 win over D-1 10^th-ranked Rochester, the Wolves are now 9-0 overall and 5-0 in the talent-laden OAA Red Division, which is home to longtime powerhouses such as Birmingham Seaholm, Troy, Bloomfield Hills Lahser, West Bloomfield and Bloomfield Hills Andover. Rochester and North Farmington are also in the division this season.

All are ranked in Division 1 or Division 2 this season but Troy.

And the Wolves have established themselves are the favorites.

Clarkston has not only joined the elite in Oakland County, but the Wolves are also favored to win a Division 1 regional in three weeks, hosted by Rochester and, for the first time, contend for a state title.

“I think we can stack up well with a lot of teams,” said Becky Freeman, who is in her third season as head coach for a program that has had a revolving door list of coaches throughout the years. “I think we are much more deeper than last year, and we didn’t really lose anybody. And we are still young. We’ll return most of the team next season.”

Clarkston was seventh at the state finals last season with 14 points, 13points behind perennial power Ann Arbor Pioneer and state runner-up Midland Dow, the top-ranked team in Division 1. Pioneer is currently ranked third.

The Wolves have made the state meet as a team six years in a row and have had at least on individual at the state tournament going back to the fall 2001 season.

It all began a decade ago with Laruen Little and Colleen Mead, two of the school’s all-time best players.

Teamwise, Clarkston was 14^th in 2009 (four points), 10^th in 2008 (10 points), seventh in the fall 2006 seventh (14 points), fifth in 2005 (16 points) and an all-time best fourth in 2004 (20 points).

There was no fall 2007 season due to the court-ordered, multi-sport season switch for MHSAA participation, which moved girls tennis from the fall to the spring in the 2007-08 school year.

Little was the 2004 state champ at No. 1 singles, while Mead was a state semifinalist in 2003 and quarterfinalist in 2002. Little qualified as a freshman in 2001 to start the chain of qualifiers and finished as the state runner-up that season.

This year’s team is apparently different.

While the Wolves have scored their state meet points in recent years widely on the strength of its singles lineup, this year’s team has much more depth. The lineup is more than just singles players, with last year’s No. 4 singles player, Abbey Hubregson, dropping down to No. 2 doubles this season thanks to several freshmen on the varsity this season.

Clarkston is loaded with several highly-touted players with impressive resumes.

The singles lineup is stacked, with junior Gabrielle Spindler, a league champ and regional runner-up last season who was also a state quarterfinalist with a 20-2 record, holding down the fort. Her only league loss this season is to Rochester’s Kelsey Dieters, the No. 1-ranked player in all of Michigan.

Freshman Lexy Baylis moved into the No. 2 slot and is one of the top players in the state in her flight and a serious threat to win titles at every invitational. Senior Kristina Lucas, who recently signed with Grand Valley State University, was also a league and state champion playing No.2 singles last season and actually is playing No. 3 singles this season, where she has been dominant.

Junior Katie Brozovich, a league and regional champ a year ago, finished as a state runner-up at No.3 singles last with a stellar 22-1 record, and is down at No. 4 singles this year.

“I guess it’s a good problem to have, with this many talented players,” said Freeman.”We had a really good group of freshmen come in and had to move people around. We have some more coming in next year.”

The doubles lineup is far deeper this season as compared to recent seasons. Two freshmen, Dana and Paige Olsen, who would likely play in the singles lineup at most schools, have teamed up at No. 1 doubles to form quite a tandem.

Hubregson and junior Amy Wozniak have also been solid at the No. 2 slot, with junior newcomer Olivia Dunn junior returnee Allie Wilson (No. 3) and sophomore Monique Zentner and freshman Annie Gencay (No. 4) also posting winning records in their respective flights.

Clarkston will participate in the Holly Invitational this weekend, where a field of some ranked teams, including Midland Dow, will be in the field.

“We’ll see where we stand against them,” offered Freeman. “Everything I’ve heard is that they are very good, very deep.”

Sound familiar?

Clarkston will look to go after the OAA Red Division title the weekend of May 13-14 at North Farmington. The Wolves are the only unbeaten, untied upon team in the league and will have several of its flights seeded first or second. The Wolves were second to Birmingham Seaholm last season, a team that they defeated 6-2 in late April.

After that, Clarkston will look to contend for a regional title, which would be its first since winning regional in 2004 and 2005. The past three season, the Wolves have been in the same regional with West Bloomfield and Rochester, which have also been solid teams. West Bloomfield won the past three regional crowns.

“We’re looking forward to the end of the season,” said Freeman.”I think the girls understand that we have a shot to do very well. Can we contend (for a state title)? There are some very good teams out there that are always good. Midland Dow is ranked No. 1 in the state, Pioneer is always up there, teams like Saline, Novi, Northville, Port Huron Northern are all good. We already beat West Bloomfield 8-0.We are looking forward of getting back to the state finals and see what we can do.”

STATE RANKINGS

Girls Tennis

(By the coaches association)

Division 1 — 1. Midland Dow; 2. Clarkston; 3. Ann Arbor Pioneer; 4. Saline; 5. Northville; 6. Hudsonville; 7. Port Huron Northern; 8. Grosse Pointe South; 9. Utica Eisenhower; 10. Rochester.

Division 2 — 1. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern; 2. Birmingham Seaholm; 3. Birmingham Marian; 4. Bloomfield Hills Andover; 5. Farmington Hills Mercy; 6. Traverse City Central; 7. Portage Northern; 8. Matawan; 9. Bloomfield Hills Lahser; 10. North Farmington.

Division 3 — 1. Birmingham Detroit Country Day; 2.Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood; 3. East Grand Rapids; 4. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Eastern; 5. Allegan; 6. Holland Christian; 7. St. Clair; 8. Petoskey; 9. Mason; 10. Richland Gull Lake.

Division 4 — 1. Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian; 2.Kalamazoo Christian; 3. Bloomfield Hills Sacred Heart; 4. Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic; 5.Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central; 6. Grand Rapids South Christian; 7. Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard; 8.GrossePointe Woods University-Liggett; 9.Pontiac Notre Dame Prep; 10. (tie) Ann Arbor Greenhills, Riverview Gabriel Richard.

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Tags: featured, Prep Girls Tennis

Category: Clarkston, High School, Prep Wraps