I-A TENNIS: Nothing’s easy, but Crusaders claim first girls title

Leading 8-4 after two rounds of the Division I-A state girls tennis final on Friday, Faith Lutheran appeared to finally be cruising to its first state title.

Nothing, though, has come easy for the Crusaders.

Faith Lutheran saw its four-point lead against arch-rival The Meadows evaporate before the Crusaders’ top two singles players each pulled out a win and lifted the team to its first state title.

Madison Foley secured the ninth point, and Kathleen Wright won the decisive set, 6-4, over The Meadows’ Erika Reiter to lift the Crusaders to a 10-8 win over the Mustangs at the Tahoe Donner Tennis Center in Truckee, Calif.

“I’m not sure it has even sunk in yet,” said Faith Lutheran coach Jeff Foley, whose team was the state runner-up to The Meadows each of the last two years. “It’s been such a long process, and the girls have worked so hard. It feels awesome. It’s great for the girls, for the school.”

Faith Lutheran (17-1) took a 4-2 lead after one round and expanded it to 8-4 after two rounds and needed to win just two of the final six sets to secure the victory.

“I was feeling cautiously optimistic,” Jeff Foley said.

But Madison Foley sprained her ankle in her second-round match and was having trouble walking.

Meanwhile, the Mustangs’ doubles teams of Ava Frazier and Paige Malik, Shalini Shah and Samantha Gondy, and Audrey Grigore and Olivia Waysack completed a third-round sweep, and Anuja Daulat raced to a 6-0 win in singles to tie the match at 8-8.

Madison Foley gutted through a 6-2 win to put Faith Lutheran back on top, and Wright recovered after nearly letting a 5-2 lead get away in her final set.

“It was anything but easy,” Jeff Foley said. “It was fitting the way it ended because we’ve always been so close with (The Meadows).”

Carolyn DiPasquale joined Madison Foley and Wright in going 2-1 in singles for Faith Lutheran. The Crusaders’ doubles teams of Jayden Mattson and Michelle Reiss, and Vanessa Lee and Dina Ciulla each went 2-1.

“They played awesome today,” Jeff Foley said. “Other people had to step up for us today. That’s what a team is all about.”

Daulat was 3-0 in singles, and the doubles teams of Frazier and Malik, and Shah and Gondy both were 2-1 for the Mustangs (13-4).

BOYS

Clark boys coach Clarence Chun scrambled his doubles lineup prior to the team’s state championship match against The Meadows on Friday.

He found the perfect combination.

The teams of Chaitanya Ingle and Christian Ong, Marcus Pasimio and Justin Ong, and Trevor Pearl and Felix Zurhorst combined to sweep the nine doubles sets and lead the Chargers to a 12-6 win over The Meadows in the title match.

Clark (16-0) became the first boys team in any classification to win three straight state titles since Bonanza turned the trick from 2001-2003.

“Three in a row, yeah, it feels good,” Chun said. “The credit always goes to the players. The passion they have for the tennis makes it so enjoyable.”

The three doubles teams all were different than the lineup Clark used to defeat South Tahoe in Thursday’s semifinal. It was the same six players the Chargers used in doubles in a 12-6 win over The Meadows in the Southern Region final, but different combinations.

“We always like to show some variety,” Chun said. “It creates excitement for the players. It creates a new environment, and it challenges them.”

Michael Pasimio went 3-0 in singles for Clark.

“He has been so consistent,” Chun said.

The Chargers completed their second straight perfect season and ran their winning streak to 51 matches.

“It takes a lot of hard work, but luck plays a factor, too,” Chun said. “It really is a good feeling, especially for our seniors who have been here for four years. They look at it and say, ‘Wow, we really did this.’”

Alex Lanzkowsky, Kevin Chau and Matthew Lamb each went 2-1 in singles for the Mustangs (13-4).