UTICA – Make that three consecutive Section III Class C championships for the Skaneateles girls tennis team, and in this instance it came despite a strong and serious challenge from long-time rival Marcellus.
Thursday’s sectional final at Utica Parkway Courts saw the top-seeded Lakers dominate singles and the no. 3 seed Mustangs control most of the doubles matches, but one match that went to three sets decided it 4-3 in Skaneateles’ favor.
It didn’t take long for the Lakers to establish its control of the singles portion. Lily Miller got a 6-0, 6-0 shutout of Kara Wangness as Kenna Ellis worked past Shaelyn Kelly 6-1, 6-1 and, by those exact same scores, Sofia Capozza beat Grace Rynkiewicz.
Marcellus, meanwhile, got on the scoreboard when, in fourth doubles, Ella Lutwin and Sophie Clarke defeated Bryn Butler and Emerson Decker 6-1, 6-3, and more success would follow.
Sofia Tufenkjian paired up with Abby Finn to defeat Bella Karpinski and Caitlin Day 6-3, 6-4. In second doubles, Sydney Colon and Claire Wrona won the first set 6-2 over Kate Kissel and Emma Whipple and, though pushed to a second-set tie-breaker, claimed it 7-1.
It all came down to first doubles, where Skaneateles’ duo of Isabelle Soderberg and Eva DeJesus jumped out in front of Marcellus’ Lila Kelly and Korinne Kemp 6-1 in the opening set.
Kelly and Kemp then rolled through the second set 6-1, meaning that the third set would decide the match and the sectional championship. Gaining service breaks, Soderberg and DeJesus went on to win the set 6-3 and keep the crown for Skaneateles.
Marcellus, in in its quarterfinal match on Monday, earned a 4-1 victory over no. 6 seed Clinton as the doubles teams of Wangsness-Kemp and Wrona-Colon did not lose a game in any of their four sets.
Though Lila Kelly lost in singles, Shaelyn Kelly beat Kalen Hwangpo 6-3, 6-3 as Emma Angotti earned a 6-0, 6-4 decision over Alena Wratten.
The semifinal pitted Marcellus against no. 7 seed Cazenovia, who had upended no. 2 seed Lowville the day before. Just as in their regular-season meeting, the Mustangs would edge the Lakers 4-3.
Not able to do much in singles (Wangneess and Shaelyn Kelly took losses) Marcellus needed all four points in doubles, and started to stir when Lutwin and Clarke blanked Cady Webb and Teagan Brown 6-0, 6-0.
Everything else was tougher, starting with Kemp and Lila Kelly beating Erin Kuhn and Leah Bell 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 before Wrona and Colon won 6-2, 1-6, 6-3 over Nora Berg and Katie Williams.
Needing its other doubles point, the Mustangs saw Finn and Tufenkjian fall behind, but battle back to beat Kiana Vazquez and Ava Grafton 6-7, 6-4, 6-0 to reach the final.
As the top seed, Skaneateles blanked no. 8 seed Westmoreland 5-0 in last Monday’s quarterfinals, with singles shutouts by Ellis, Miller and Capozza. The doubles teams of DeJesus-Soderberg and Kissel-Whipple each won in two sets.
It figured to get tougher in the semifinal against no. 4 seed Vernon-Verona-Sherrill, but again the Lakers were dominant, keeping the Red Devils off the board in a 5-0 decision.
Capozza’s 6-3, 7-5 singles win over Alex Rentzis followed Ellis handling Claudia Marsello 6-2, 6-2 and Miller rolling past Laney Falkenmeyer 6-1, 6-0.
DeJesus and Soderberg won in two sets, but all the other doubles matches went to three sets, including Kissel and Whipple outlasting Maeve Talbot and Bridgette Robinson 6-2, 4-6, 6-2.
Karpinski and Day had to survive a third-set tie-breaker to edge Lauren Pawlka and Annemarie Makarchuk 6-1, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5) as Decker and Butler also had to go to the wire in their 6-1, 1-6, 7-6 (7-3) win over Charlee Watkins and Mackenzie Rogowski.
Over in the Class B sectional bracket, Westhill, the no. 7 seed, had prevailed 4-1 over Carthage in the opening round, but was toppled in the quarterfinals 6-1 by no. 2 seed Oneida.
Julia Fiegel earned the Warriors’ lone point in second singles, beating Ella McKay 6-4, 6-0. Katie Hagrman and Cadence Ramsing lost in two sets, with Megan Dwyer and Olivia Antoine going to three sets in doubles but taking a 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 defeat to Myah Rainbow and Saige Meehan.
Oneida went on to beat New Hartford and Jamesville-DeWitt to win the sectional championship.
