Negaunee Edges Rival to Earn D1 Title
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
October 9, 2014
KINGSFORD — It has been quite a battle between Negaunee and Kingsford for the Upper Peninsula Division 1 girls tennis championship the past three seasons.
They shared the title two years ago. Kingsford then was crowned champion and Negaunee was runner-up last season.
It was Negaunee’s turn to gain top honors Wednesday as it won 4 of 8 flights and scored 16 points. Runner-up Kingsford had 13, followed by Escanaba with 11, Gladstone with six and Menominee and Marquette at three apiece.
The Miners made title-round appearances in all four singles flights and No. 2 doubles.
Negaunee’s Lauren Anderson and Kassey Harsila prevailed in that doubles final, topping Kingsford’s Anna Hornick and Tara DelSanto 6-1, 7-5.
Getting to the finals alone was no easy task for Anderson-Harsila, who edged Gladstone’s Bailey Griebel-Carly DeVet 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) in the semifinals.
“That was really a key for us,” Negaunee coach Kyle Saari said. “The singles have been our strength all year, but we needed to get points somewhere in doubles. Fortunately, Lauren and Kassey came through for us and we were able to win a couple three-setters and tie-breakers.”
The Miners added three victories in singles, including senior Allison Carlson’s 6-4, 2-6, 6-1 triumph over Kingsford’s Janay Walters at No. 1 on a sunny, but chilly and windy day.
“I just stayed positive in the third set,” said Carlson, who also won at No. 1 singles last year. “Late in the second set, I tried to do some things to build momentum for the third set. I definitely had to fight for this one. I couldn’t go for the corners because the wind would carry the ball out of bounds. I had to keep the ball in the middle.”
After the tournament, Saari took a few moments to pay tribute to Carlson’s career.
“Allison probably had one of the finest careers at our school on the girls side,” he said. “She’s everything you want for a No. 1 singles player. Once you get to a third set, mental toughness becomes a big factor, especially after losing the second set.”
Negaunee’s Angela Ring clipped Kingsford’s Katy Hicks (6-2, 6-3) in No. 2 singles and senior Dana DeBretto beat Escanaba’s Kayla VanPortfliet (6-4, 6-2) at No. 3 on a day when groundstrokes were the rule.
“Groundstrokes have been my main advantage throughout the year,” said DeBretto, who captured the No. 4 singles title a year ago. “I wanted to hit fast-paced groundstrokes. I was trying to keep the ball close to the net and let the wind do its thing. As long as I was hitting the ball faster, the less chance there was for the wind to carry it.”
Escanaba sophomore Hannah Beversluis prevented the Miners from sweeping singles with a 6-3, 6-4 triumph over Allison Ring at No. 4.
“Everything about my game is a lot more consistent this year, especially my serving,” said Beversluis, who placed fourth in that flight last season. “It’s easier to predict where the ball is going to go. There’s more strategy to it, which makes it more fun.”
Beversluis was trailing 2-1 in the second set, but rallied to take the next three points for a 4-2 lead.
“In the finals, I played one of my best matches of the season,” she added. “Although, it was a little more complicated with the extra factors. The wind was a disadvantage for both players. It was pretty hard playing the first match because it was so cold (with temperatures in the 30s). My hands actually got numb.”
Escanaba is coached by Dennis Lueneburg, who already returned to California for the winter. Assistant Ernie Burch handled the coaching duties in his absence.
The situation provided motivation for many of Escanaba’s players, including seniors Olivia LaForest and Angie LaMarche, who were crowned No. 4 doubles champions.
“We wanted to win it for Denny,” said LaForest, who was part of the No. 3 doubles championship team a year ago. “Through the season he kept reminding us to take it one point at a time. We talked to Denny on the phone before the meet and he told us it was 75 degrees out there. We kept trying to pretend we were with him in California.”
LaMarche had similar thoughts.
“This was our last year with him and it was like he was here in spirit,” she said. “I didn’t really think of this as a championship match. We just tried to play it like any other match.”
Kingsford’s lone title came in No. 1 doubles where seniors Ali VanRemortel and Jaeylyn Jennings rallied past Gladstone’s Anna Carmella and Paige Schwartz 5-7, 6-2, 6-3.
“We kept reminding ourselves how much we wanted it,” VanRemortel said. “Gladstone has a good team. They’ve improved from earlier this season.”
Jennings also was impressed by the Gladstone duo.
“We beat them handily during the regular season,” she said. “Although, we hadn’t played them since early in the season. We didn’t know what to expect. They played much better against us this time.”
Menominee claimed a doubles title at No. 3 as Madison McDonell and Jade LeMay beat Kingsford’s Noell Smith-Heather Harris 6-2, 6-1.
PHOTOS: (Top) Negaunee poses with its UP Division 1 tennis championship trophy; bottom from left: Allison Ring, Lauren Anderson, Angie Ring, Kassy Harsila, Allison Carlson. Top: Assistant coach Cody Scanlon, Megan Syrjala, Brooke Bossert, Hanna Kantola, Katrina Turecky, Elly Kantola, Dana DeBretto, head coach Kyle Saari. (Middle) Kingsford's Ali VanRemortel eyes up the ball during her No. 1 doubles final against Anna Caramella and Paige Schwartz of Gladstone. VanRemortel and Jaeylyn Jennings won the match 5-7, 6-2, 6-3. (Below) Negaunee's Dana DeBretto serves the ball during her No. 3 singles final against Kayla VanPortfleit of Escanaba. DeBretto won the match 6-4, 6-2. (Photos by Keith Shelton.)
Perseverance Pays for East Grand Rapids
June 3, 2017
By Butch Harmon
Special for Second Half
HOLLAND – Refuse to lose would be the perfect theme for this year’s Lower Peninsula Division 2 Finals as time after time players came from behind to claim victory.
East Grand Rapids players were involved in many of the comeback wins, and that proved critical in the Pioneers winning their first Finals championship since claiming the Division 3 title in 2009.
East Grand Rapids finished with 31 points to edge second place Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern by three, with Bloomfield Hills Marian placing third with 21 points.
East Grand Rapids knew it would take a total team effort to defeat its longtime local rival, as Northern has won nine MHSAA championships since 2002.
“We know that Northern is always good,” said East Grand Rapids coach Mickey Mikesell. “We’ve known them for a long time. I know their coach and kids very well.
“This title feels real good for my girls. Since we’ve moved up to Division 2 we’ve had some tough luck with injuries and other things, so to get one feels great.”
Strong play in singles fueled East’s drive to the title. East Grand Rapids singles players won three of the four flights including with a pair of come-from-behind wins.
At No. 1 singles, sophomore Sloane Teske battled back from dropping the first set to defeat Mason senior Olivia Hanover 3-6, 6-1, 6-3. Teske knew the road to victory would be a difficult one, as she lost to Hanover in last year’s semifinals.
“I just shrugged off losing that first set and moved on,” Teske said. “(Hanover) played a great match, and she made me work real hard to beat here. I just stayed confident and wanted it more.”
Teske’s win also helped the Pioneers clinch the overall team title.
“I’m so proud of our team and what we’ve done this year,” Teske said. “Everyone worked real hard for this.”
At No. 2 singles, top-seeded East Grand Rapids junior Hannah Stuursma played to form with a 6-0, 6-0 win against Kaitlyn Fox of Forest Hills Central. For Stuursma, her comeback involved battling back from injury. Stuursma battled back from a pair of foot surgeries during her sophomore season to win her first title this spring
“Coming off a foot injury, I was not very confident last year,” Stuursma said. “I was scared of hurting my foot again. This year my confidence level was so much higher. I’m really excited and real proud of how I played. I was pretty nervous, but I kept my confidence up.”
Stuursma’s title was the first of the day for the Pioneers.
“I’m so proud of our team this year,” Stuursma said. “Everyone really stepped up. We won so many big matches here, and I’m so proud of our team.”
Coming from behind was also the story for East Grand Rapids junior Audrey Olson at No. 3 singles. After dropping the first set 2-6 to Sema Colak of Okemos, Olson won the second set 6-2. In the third, Olson found herself trailing four games to one before rallying one more time to claim a 6-4 win and the title.
“This feels real great,” Olson said. “I started out down 2-6, and then I was down 1-4 in the third set. I had great support from my coaches and my teammates, and that made the difference. They told me to dig down deep, and I did.”
At No. 4 singles, Forest Hills Northern senior Felicia Zhang turned in a solid performance to win her second consecutive Finals flight title. Zhang turned back Gigi Kalabat of Bloomfield Hills Marian 6-0, 6-2.
“It’s a real great feeling,” Zhang said. “I wanted to win it most for the team. To win another title my senior year is indescribable.”
Zhang was not the only member of her family to win a championship, as her younger sister, freshman Abby Zhang, was part of Northern’s No. 2 doubles team that claimed a title. Abby Zhang teamed with senior Salonee Marwaha to hold off the East Grand Rapids duo of Annie Meye and Alivia Vencelj 7-5, 6-3.
Being able to win with her younger sister made Felicia Zhang’s title even sweeter.
“She is a freshman, and this was our only chance to play with each other,” Felicia Zhang said. “It feels great.”
That feeling was shared by the younger Zhang.
“It feels great to win a state title my first time here,” Abby Zhang said. “It was also great to help send Salonee out with a state title in her last high school match.”
The doubles title was the second straight for Marwaha, who was part of Northern’s winning No. 3 doubles team last year. Like last season, Marwaha was paired up with a freshman.
“We didn’t know at the beginning of the season that we would be paired together,” Marwaha said. “At the beginning of the season we started a little sluggish, but we meshed so well together that it didn’t take long for us to get going. Abby did a great job. As a senior, I just told her to keep calm and be patient. She did a great job of that.”
Northern won three of the four doubles flights, and no pair of players displayed a determination to win as strong as Northern’s No. 1 team of Maansi Dalmia and Claire Tatman. Just getting to the finals was an exercise in determination as Dalmia and Tatman outlasted Birmingham Seaholm’s Layla Bellissimo and Emily Hirsch in a semifinals match that lasted more than three hours. In a match that saw two tiebreakers, Dalmia and Tatman came away with a 6-7 (7), 7-5, 7-3 (3) victory.
The semifinal win sent Dalmia and Tatman into the finals, where they went up against top-seeded Yana Beeker and Kristin McLintock of Traverse City Central. The Northern duo had more than enough energy remaining, as they claimed a 6-4, 6-4 win.
“It’s the best feeling in the world,” Tatman said.
“I’m at a loss for words,” Dalmia added.
The title was a repeat for Tatman who teamed up with Marwaha to win No. 3 doubles last season.
“The semifinal match was super close,” Dalmia said. “It was over three hours and had two tie breakers. We knew we had to dig deep down to pull it off. We just took it one point at a time. I don’t feel that tired now, but I know later I will feel it.”
Refusing to lose was key to the semifinal and final wins for the duo.
“You just have to power through it,” Tatman said. “We practiced hard all season, and we knew in the end that we could do it if we kept powering through.”
Coming from behind was also the theme of the No. 3 doubles match. Nele Geiger and Sydney McLean of Forest Hills Northern rallied for a 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 win against Lily Trinch and Brooke Forte of Birmingham Seaholm.
The No. 4 doubles title also went three sets. East Grand Rapids’ Audrey DeVries and Kate Mackeigan outlasted the Bloomfield Hills Marian team of Ariano Kotsakis and Catherine Chinonis 6-0, 2-6, 6-4. DeVries and Mackeigan were runners-up at that flight last season.
PHOTOS: (Top) East Grand Rapids tennis players hoist their MHSAA championship trophy. (Middle) Forest Hills Northern No. 1 doubles players Claire Tatman and Maansi Dalmia pursue a volley Saturday. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)