ONONDAGA COUNTY – So good again and so close again.
Such was the Baldwinsville girls team’s dilemma in the wake of last Tuesday’s match against Fayetteville-Manlius where, once more, the Bees put up a winning effort, only to fall 4-3 to the Hornets.
Three times in 2023, B’ville went up against F-M, and each time the Bees racked up points, yet not enough of them to get a program-defining win, including 4-3 decisions to start the year and in the Section III Class A team tournament final.
Here, two of the three singles matches would go in B’ville’s favor, including first singles where Mira Nadzan rolled past Sherya Bhattacharya 6-1, 6-1 as Ayla Kalfass beat Samreen Mangat by those exact same scores.
F-M battled back with Erin McLain handing Jasmine Rawda a 7-5, 6-2 defeat, but the Bees would get a point in doubles when Sonia Nadzan and Lainey Nesbitt worked past Sadie Toole and Sonia LaHaye 6-2, 7-6.
Needing all the other points in doubles, the Hornets got them. B’ville’s teams of Lainey Zoanett-Livia Zoanetti and Carmela Budzich-Ella Clary managed just one game in four total sets, while Emma Krukowski and Aiden Dubois nearly got to a third set but fell to Anokhi and Samira Dalal 6-2, 7-5.
B’ville moved from this match to blanking Fulton 7-0 a day later, with Kalfass and Mira Nadzan each getting 6-0, 6-0 shutouts over, respectively, Andie Kerr and Gwen Hollenbeck as Rawda nearly matched them, beating Rose Douglas 6-0, 6-1.
Another 6-0, 6-0 shutout came when Budzich and Clary beat Claire Briggs and Allison Treener, with the Nadzan sisters dropping just two games as Krukowski paired with Sophia Randolph to beat Alissa Murdoch and Adelaide McEachen 6-2, 6-0. In first doubles, Nesbitt and Sonia Nadzan routed Julianne Delano and Lauren Bradshaw 6-0, 6-2.
Continuing this stretch of four matches in as many days, B’ville blanked Henninger 7-0 on Thursday afternoon, and six of those matches were shutouts, including a singles sweep by Rawda, Kalfass and Mira Nadzan. Only the Zoanettis gave up a single game in doubles, and still handled Nylah Frempong and Zeinab Mohamed 6-0, 6-0.
Another big match loomed on Friday, though, the Bees going to West Genesee where, sweeping all the doubles matches, it ultimately got a 6-1 victory over the Wildcats.
Pushed to three sets, the Zoanetti sisters outlasted Kailyn Drury and Evelina Mauro 7-6 (7-4), 4-6, 6-4, but one other doubles match was forfeited as Budzich and Clary topped Charlotte Myers and Emily Page 6-3, 6-0 and Nesbitt and Sophia Nadzan got past Ava Amodio and Helena Allen 7-5, 6-2.
By those exact same 7-5, 6-2 totals, Rawda lost to Sarah Domin, but Kalfass and Mira Nadzan both worked quickly, getting 6-0, 6-0 shutouts over, respectively, Angelina Allen and Calina Olson.
All this was followed by an invitational tournament at Bethlethem, near Albany, on Saturday. Then B’ville has four more matches this week against Syracuse West, Auburn, Cicero-North Syracuse and East Syracuse Minoa.
