GIRLS TENNIS: Winner-take-all, Troy Athens prevails at OAA-White tourney for outright title
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
Dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
FARMINGTON — The formula for Saturday’s OAA White Division girls tennis league tournament was simple: Winner takes all.
Both Troy Athens and Rochester Stoney Creek entered the seven-school league tournament at Farmington High School with identical 5-0-1 dual match records and a share of the league lead. The winner of the tournament would end up earning the league crown outright.
Troy Athens amassed 49 points to win its first league title since 2011, edging Stoney Creek’s 44 points for the tournament and overall title. Lake Orion finished third with 38 points, while Farmington, Berkley, Rochester and Farmington Harrison followed suit.
“We knew we had to win the tournament in order to win the league,” said Athens coach Andrew Shipp. “The girls stepped up. We had some flights where we beat people that beat us earlier in the season.”
That was the case for Lake Orion’s Selina Fuchs, who came in with the No. 2 seed but toppled top-seeded Jamie Lai of Stoney Creek in the finals at No. 1 singles, 6-4, 6-1.
Athens had a player reach the semis at No. 1 singles while the Red Hawks won the No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 singles flights.
Sriakhila Akula prevailed at No. 2 singles with a 6-0, 7-5 sweep of Berkley’s Makenzie Newman. Neha Sridhar posted a 6-3, 6-2 sweep of Stoney Creek’s Fran Angel at No. 3 singles, while Hope Ma was the flight champion at No. 4 singles for Athens, topping Marla Krasnick of Berkley, 2-6, 6-1, 6-2.
Athens won one doubles flights, finished second in two others and reached the semifinals in a fourth flight, which helped the Red Hawks pull away from Stoney Creek. The runner-up Cougars captured only one flight on the day.
Athens’ No. 4 doubles tandum of Nina Chen and Ji Woo Choe posted a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Lake Orion’s Taylor Doran and Collette Doran for the Red Hawks’ doubles win.
“I think the big thing for us is that we won three of the four singles flights and we had finalists in three doubles flights,” said Shipp. “:Even our No. 1 singles player, Morgan Purvis reached the semifinals by beating a player that she had lost to earlier in the season. Our No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 singles players all had great days, too. Our whole team played well.”
Farmington captured the No. 1 and No. 2 doubles flights. The Falcons’ No. 1 duo of Ashley Tran and Priyanka Darsi-Sakthikumar topped the Athens unit of Joy Goldschmidt and Hanka Lekovic, 6-2, 7-6, while the No. 2 partnership of sisters Maria and Natalia Peurach emerged victorious over Lake Orion’s Kelsey Corless and Carley Jarvis in three sets, 2-6, 6-2, 6-0.
Stoney Creek’s lone champion came from the No. 3 doubles team of Dominique Biondo and Joyce Yu, who joined forces to defeat Athens’ Sarah Yee and Amanda Harris in three sets, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.
All tennis teams from around the Lower Peninsula will engage in regional competition this Thursday and Friday. Athens will compete at Grosse Pointe South Thursday.
“We have a shot there, too,” said Shipp.
OAA WHITE DIVISION TOURNAMENT
(At Rochester Schools)
TEAM SCORES — 1. Troy Athens, 49; 2. Rochester Stoney Creek, 44; 3. Lake Orion, 38; 4. Farmington; 5. Berkley; 6. Rochester; 7. Farmington Harrison.
DUAL STANDINGS — 1. Troy Athens (5-0-1); 2. Rochester Stoney Creek (5-0-1); 3. Lake Orion (4-2-0); 4. Farmington (3-3-0); 5. Berkley (2-4-0); 6. Rochester (1-5-0; 7. Farmington Harrison (0-6-0).
FINAL STANDINGS — 1. Troy Athens, 13.5; 2. Rochester Stoney Creek, 12.5; 3. Lake Orion, 10; 4. Farmington, 8; 5. Berkley, 6; 6. Rochester, 4; 7. Farmington Harrison 2.
CHAMPIONSHIP FLIGHTS
SINGLES — 1. Selina Fuchs (Lake Orion) d. Jamie Lai (Rochester Stoney Creek) 6-4, 6-1; 2. Sriakhila Akula (Troy Athens) d. Makenzie Newman (Berkley) 6-0, 7-5; 3. Neha Sridhar (Troy Athens) d. Fran Angel (Rochester Stoney Creek) 6-3, 6-2; 4. Hope Ma (Troy Athens) d. Marla Krasnick (Berkley) 2-6, 6-1, 6-2.
DOUBLES — 1. Ashley Tran-Priyanka Darsi Sakthikumar (Farmington) d. Joy Goldschmidt-Hanka Lekovic (Troy Athens) 6-2, 7-6 (3); 2. Maria Peurach-Natalia Peurach (Farmington) d. Kelsey Corless-Carley Jarvis (Lake Orion) 2-6, 6-2, 6-0; 3. Dominique Biondo-Joyce Yu (Rochester Stoney Creek) d. Sarah Yee-Amanda Harris (Troy Athens) 4-6, 6-4, 6-3; 4. Nina Chen-Ji Woo Choe (Troy Athens) d. Taylor Doran-Collette Doran (Lake Orion) 6-1, 6-2.
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