Two streaks – one long and extraordinary, the other a bit more modest – continued Monday as the Fayetteville-Manlius and Christian Brothers Academy girls tennis teams emerged with Section III team titles at Utica Parkway Courts.
In the case of the Hornets, the streaks now stand at 289 consecutive match wins and 17 straight sectional Class A titles, the latest of both coming with a 7-0 sweep over Liverpool in Monday’s Class A final. Meanwhile, the Brothers made its back-to-back sectional crowns by toppling top seed New Hartford 5-2 in the Class B final.
To some degree, F-M caught a break, because Liverpool hit the court without three of its top players, out due to illness or injury. Given the Hornets’ remarkable depth, though, it may not have mattered if everyone on the Warriors was present.
Sienna Susko took little time in first singles, beating Sarah O’Hara 6-0, 6-0. Carly Romano put together a 7-6, 6-0 victory over Madeline Cass, while Meghan Muraco completed the singles portion with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Holly Glor.
Over in doubles, Allison Vizgaitis and Caitlin Welker survived a tough first set, earning a 7-5, 6-1 victory over Megan Falzone and Melissa Inch. By similar scores, Rhiannon Iorio and Katie Muller got past Kerry McSweeney and Kristina Monakhova 7-5, 6-0, with Olivia Calancie and Kara Goldberg handling Laura Gardiner and Nicolette Hamilton 6-4, 6-0. Adair Douglas and Jessica Guarino got a 6-0, 6-0 shutout over Erna Abaczic and Samantha Thayer.
CBA had a steeper challenge, at least on the surface, against a fully healthy opponent in New Hartford that had run unbeaten through the Tri-Valley League and cruised past two playoff opponents. But the Brothers, who beat Jamesville-DeWitt in the semifinals two days earlier, overcame the Spartans by dominating in singles and splitting the four doubles matches.
Olivia Messineo, unbeaten in 2010, stayed that way by dominating Farial Asmat in a 6-0, 6-0 sweep. Shilpa Kamani took care of Claire Hotvedt in a pair of 6-2 sets, while Colleen Cavanaugh had the toughest battle, but still earned a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Sania Zaki.
Going to doubles, Nicole Kalhorn and Becky Scullin earned the clinching point for CBA, beating Alex Romano and Katie Steates 6-2, 6-2. In a third-set tie-breaker, Shannon Fitch and Lauren Mastroeni worked past Madeline Locke and Rachel Madden 6-2, 2-6, 7-6 (7-5). Elsewhere, Jenna Bartolotti and Chrissy Thomson-Basha fell to Emily Acquaviva and Ooha Kambhampati 2-6, 7-5, 7-5.
