Now it was time for the Cazenovia girls tennis team to make its push for another Section III Class C championship.
Sectional team tournament play got underway late last week, following the conclusion of a regular season where the Lakers breezed to the Onondaga High School League Liberty American division title.
In last Monday’s match against Phoenix, Cazenovia blanked the Firebirds 7-0, Alex Galle having to go through a first-set tie-breaker to beat Gianna DeRoberts 7-6 (7-4), 6-1, while Lucy Langan beat Lauren Schmidt 6-1, 6-2 and Julia Barrett had a 6-1, 6-3 win over Catherine Musumeci.
One doubles match was forfeited by Phoenix, and the others went to Cazenovia in straight sets. Lucy and Laura Connor were back together, stopping Katelyn Carbonaro and Brielle DeRoberts 6-1, 6-2, while Summer Steinhorst and Meg Milmoe beat Bryn Demong and Molly Thorn 6-1, 6-3. The Harris sisters were together, too, stopping Marissa Moore and Larissa Semanchuk-Enser 6-2, 6-3.
Just 24 hours later, Cazenovia visited Marcellus, and again won by a 7-0 margin. Barrett went through a singles battle with the Mustangs’ Courtney Otis, but won it 7-5, 6-2 as Galle stopped Abby Vetsch 6-2, 6-0 and Langan had a 6-3, 6-3 win over Maddie Conklin.
The Connor sisters toppled Micah Mixon and Hannah Tarolli 6-3, 6-1, with Steinhorst and Meghan Milmoe handling Caroline Keegan and Marcy Gosson 6-2, 6-2. By those same scores, Annaka Bruno and Lizzy Druke beat Anna Canny and Alyssa Goodwin, with Abby Burrell and Jana Harris prevailing over Grace Vensel and Allison Clancy 6-2, 6-4.
And this led to Wednesday’s match between Cazenovia and Chittenango, the two sides having already met twice this fall. The third encounter went the same as the Lakers handled the Bears 6-1.
Overcoming a terrible start in her singles match, Langan, two games from defeat, managed to beat Shannon Koegel 0-6, 7-5, 6-2, while Galle got past Kelly Gloo 6-2, 7-6 (8-6) and Barrett completed the singles sweep with a 6-0, 6-3 win over Anna Norman.
Chittenango would get a point in doubles when Emma Bailey and Coralee Everett beat Bruno and Druke 6-3, 6-4. By similar scores, though, Steinhorst and Mimoe beat Rachel Cleary and Alyssa Knight 6-3, 6-3, with the Connor sisters topping Mya Streiff and Jessie Gilbert 6-1, 6-1.
Burrell and Julie Silverman blanked Meghan Pexton and Jennie Macintosh 6-0, 6-0. With the loss, the Bears fell to 7-6, an otherwise terrific regular season where half the defeats came to Cazenovia.
And then the Section III Class B team tournament started the very next day. Cazenovia, as the no. 3 seed, shut out no. 14 seed South Jefferson 7-0, but Chittenango, the no. 10 seed, was knocked out by no. 7 seed Jamesville-DeWitt in a narrow 4-3 decision.
Against South Jefferson, the Lakers’ singles trio of Galle, Langan and Barrett lost just two games in six combined sets. The doubles matches were a bit tougher, but Cazenovia won them, too, only getting scared a bit in second doubles, where Steinhorst and Milmoe got a 7-5, 7-5 victory over Rachel Fair and Savannah Fish.
The Lakers advanced to Saturday’s sectional quarterfinal against no. 6 seed New Hartford, who sported a 12-2 record, but Cazenovia rolled through all four of the doubles matches and knocked out the Spartans 6-1,
To commence this doubles sweep, the Connor sisters routed New Hartford’s sister tandem of Katie and Nicole Faroukh 6-1, 6-1. Mimoe and Steinhorst paired up for a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Rachael Duchnycz and Natalia Constantine, while Bruno and Druke prevailed in two sets and Silverman and Burrell got past Juliet Marhamat and Avery Walters 6-3, 6-2.
Galle couldn’t do much in singles against New Hartford star Sarah Corasanti, taking a 6-1, 6-0 defeat, but Langan worked her way past Leila Marhamati 6-3, 7-6 (7-2) as Barrett dominated Maya Pedula in a 6-0, 6-0 shutout.
Back in the opening round, Chittenango gained traction in doubles against J-D, seeing Choi and Cleary rout Inka Gajri and Margaret Frank 6-1, 6-0, while Bailey and Everett beat Riya Sharma and Sara Gow 6-3, 6-3. A long, three-set battle saw Nadia Cannistra and Alexis Drake fall behind, survive a second-set tie-breaker and get past Sophia Foti and Eileen Tan 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 11-9.
However, Strieff and Gilbert lost in doubles to Natalie Alweis and Katie Tzizanis 6-2, 7-5, and none of the singles matches went to three sets. Norman lost, 6-2, 6-4, to Anna Sofia Hege, with Meghan Pexton falling to Olivia DeHoog 6-0, 6-0 and Gloo taking a 6-1, 6-0 defeat to Maya Pollock.
J-D would fall in the next round, 7-0, to no. 2 seed CBA, who would now clash with Cazenovia in the sectional Class B team semifinal on Wednesday afternoon, with the winner getting to the final against top seed Oneida or no. 4 seed Carthage on Friday at Utica Parkway Courts.
