CENTRAL NEW YORK – In three separate divisions, area high school girls tennis players emerged with Section III championships from this week’s singles and doubles competition.
One of the most anticipated matches of all was the Division I singles final, which pitted Christian Brothers Academy star Gieselle Vlassis against. Fayetteville-Manlius standout Anna Manta.
When they played on Thursday afternoon at Oneida High School, it belonged to Vlassis, who claimed the first set 6-0 and the second set 6-2, though both advanced to this week’s state qualifier at Drumlins.
Neither player faced much trouble getting to the finals in the early rounds held at Syracuse University’s Sktyop Courts.
Vlassis dropped just one game in three matches against Erin Calkins (Auburn), Madelyn Delano (Fulton) and CBA’s Julia DelPino, who earned a semifinal berth against her teammate, only to take a 6-1, 6-0 defeat.
On the other half of the bracket, Manta did not lose any games, getting 6-0, 6-0 shutouts over Mira Nazdan (Baldwinsville) and Kelly Geiwitz (Liverpool) before blanking Geiwitz’s teammate, Angelica Underwood, in the semifinal round. The Hornets’ Laura Scalzetti and Trisha Adavikolanu both lost in the round of 16.
Meanwhile, in Division II Jamesville-DeWitt had its doubles team of Mona Farah and Tara Pollock tear its way to the title without dropping a set.
With the top seed, Farah and Pollock blanked Karina Andronovich and Julia Dzeravenets (Whitesboro) 6-0, 6-0 and then top Brianna Crystal and Mya McLean-Wilson (Chittenango) 6-2, 6-0 in the early rounds held Tuesday at Utica Parkway Courts.
When Farah and Pollock beat another Chittenango side, Allison Soulier and Anna Spencer, 6-3, 6-0 in the semifinals, it set up a title match with Oneida’s Mikah Albro and Hannah Myatt, where despite the latter pair’s home court advantage the J-D pair proved too much, taking the sectional title 6-2, 6-1.
And in Division IV it was the Manlius-Pebble Hill duo of Amitees and Parmees Fazeli that emerged victorious. Against Clinton’s Victoria Elefante and Emily Le in the finals, the Fazelis made quick work of the match, claiming a 6-0, 6-0 shutout.
Piror to this, the Fazellis had to win a semifinal against their own Trojan teammates, Eden Hildebrandt and Fariel Migeed, 6-0, 6-0 after Hildebrandt and Migeed topped Madison Brand and Marcells Venettozzi (Little Falls) in the quarterfinals. Anohter MPH duo, Sophia Menacho and Arielle Nemes, lost in the opening round.
In Division I doubles F-M’s Angela Iskander and Maya McKenzie made the longest run thanks to a tough 2-6, 6-4, 7-5 quarterfinal win over CBA’s Grace Catalano and Aubrey Mills.
Iskander and McKenzie lost in the semifinals to Diana Kozenyatko and Gabby Underwood (Liverpool), with the teams of Ava Abruzzese-Brooke Tester and Natalie Hugo-Katya Quinn both falling in the quarterfinals. CBA had the duos of Hana Kang-Allie Mancini and Lily Geneocco-Isabella Meade lose in the round of 16.
Playing in Division II singles, J-D’s Hallie Bouchard, Ebu Oguntola and Sevara Abduvalieva all won opening-round matches, with Bouchard edging East Syracuse Minoa’s Adrianna Byrd 10-8.
Then they all lost in the round of 16 – Bouchard to Oneida’s Cara Campanie 6-4, 6-1, Abduvalieva to New Hartford’s Sophia Burynski 6-1, 6-0, and Oguntola 6-2, 6-1 to Watertown’s Lilly Renzi.
Two other ESM players appeared in singles Lizzy Phillips, lost 6-0, 6-1 to Oneida’s Julianna Caroli, and Brooke Kirkpatrick lost in the first round 10-2 to Mexico’s Juliana Smith.
The Spartans also had Rhiannon Axtman and Bella Sylvester work in doubles, where they lost a 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 battle to Whitesboro’s Jocelyn Kulis and Sarah Mullen as the teams of Jessica Baker-Angelina Baxter and Tierrah Bauer-Gianna Brilbeck lost in the opening rounds along with J-D’s Ella Brann and Ava Harle.
