Preview: Serving Up Plenty of Winners
May 28, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Reigning champions will abound at this weekend’s Lower Peninsula Girls Tennis Finals.
But a few have opportunities to cement themselves in the MHSAA record book as well.
Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood can become just the third program to win at least five straight MHSAA LP girls tennis championships – and first since Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett finished a nine-season run in 2002.
Meanwhile, Okemos’ Emily Struble can repeat as No. 1 singles champion in Division 2 – and finish her career with four individual titles, becoming just the fifth player to accomplish that feat. Utica’s Davina Nguyen and Kalamazoo Christian’s Audrey Bouma can join a group of 15 who have won three MHSAA flight championships.
Coverage of all four Finals will be published on Second Half later Saturday evening. Below is a brief look at top contenders at each tournament, with play beginning Friday morning. Click for more including brackets and seeds for all 32 flights.
DIVISION 1 at Greater Midland Tennis Center
Top ranked: 1. Northville, 2. Midland Dow, 3. Grosse Pointe South.
Grosse Pointe South won last season’s Final by six points and is seeking its third title in four seasons. Midland Dow is seeking its first title since 2009 and first top-two finish since 2010. But both are expected to chase Northville – which is seeking its first championship and tied for third a year ago.
Northville: A sweep of doubles certainly would carry Northville far in its title quest, and the Mustangs are seeded first at all four of those flights with Anika Mukherji and Reeshma Kumar at No. 1, Paige Baal and Claudia Ma at No. 2, Jordan Hermiz and Amelia Albanelli at No. 3 and Serena Wang and Molly Bis at No. 4. Hermiz was part of last season’s No. 3 champion. All but one flight is seeded, and No. 3 singles Joanne Gao also earned a top spot heading into the weekend.
Midland Dow: All eight flights are seeded as Dow aspires to ascend from last season’s tie for seventh place. No. 2 singles player and freshman Jessica Brown is the top seed at her flight, and Elaina Parrillo is the second seed at No. 3 after finishing runner-up at No. 4 in 2014. Top singles player McKenna Root missed last season with injuries but has returned and signed to play next season at the University of Alabama-Birmingham.
Grosse Pointe South – The Blue Devils return one singles player and a doubles pair who won championships last season plus two more previous singles champions. Grosse Pointe South has claimed No. 4 singles the last three seasons with Maggie Sweeney (now No. 1 doubles) in 2012, Madie Flournoy (now No. 3) in 2013 and Maddie Paolucci (second seed at No. 2) winning the flight last spring. Kelly Beardslee and Ginny Hayden are the second seed at No. 2 doubles after winning No. 4 last year, and Morgane Flournoy was part of last season’s No. 2 runner-up and will team with Sweeney at No. 1. Raven Neely is the second seed at No. 1 singles after making the semifinals last season.
Utica’s Davina Nguyen: The senior standout can finish with her third championship at No. 1 singles to go with last season’s and her 2012 title. The future Michigan State University player enters as the second seed, however, after losing her Regional Final match to Ava Thielman (see below).
Utica Eisenhower’s Ava Thielman: Eisenhower’s sophomore defeated Nguyen in three sets two weeks ago and also defeated her in an eight-game set earlier this season. Thielman was unseeded last season and made the quarterfinals; her only loss this season is to Struble of Okemos, according to an Oakland Press report.
Clarkston’s Isabella Spindler: The Wolves’ junior moved up to No. 1 singles after finishing runner-up at No. 2 as a freshman and making the semifinals of that flight last season. She enters as the fourth seed this weekend.
Other returning 2014 flight champions: Port Huron Northern’s Fran Basha (No. 1 doubles in 2014, No. 1 singles this season), Port Huron Northern’s Maggie Bacheller (No. 2 doubles in 2014, No. 1 doubles with Margaret Smith this season).
DIVISION 2 at Kalamazoo College
Top ranked: 1. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern, 2. Birmingham Seaholm, 3. Bloomfield Hills Marian.
One of these three teams has won Division 2 every season dating to 2003. Forest Hills Northern owns eight of those titles and split last year’s with Seaholm – with Marian finishing third after winning most recently in 2013.
Forest Hills Northern: The Huskies’ strength should continue to shine. Reigning champion Madeline Bissett at No. 2 singles and runner-up Sydney Whitfield at No. 4 return as top seeds at those respective flights, and No. 1 runner-up Claire Aleck is back as a third seed at that flight. Forest Hills Northern also won two doubles flights last season and are top-seeded at two again with Felicia Zhang and Maansi Dalmia at No. 2 and Lizzy Vanharn and Denise Bilbao at No. 4.
Birmingham Seaholm: Five individuals who were part of flight championships last season lead the squad; Claire Markley is unseeded at No. 1 singles but won No. 3 in 2014, and Sophie Dixon is the second seed at No. 2 after pairing with Lisa Johnston (now top-seeded at No. 3 singles) to win No. 4 doubles a year ago. Meaghan Flynn and Emily McDermott won No. 3 doubles last season; Flynn is part of the second seed at No. 2 with McDermott part of the third seed at No. 3.
Bloomfield Hills Marian: The Mustangs should make another push with veterans at the top of the lineup. Breann Lungham is unseeded at No. 1 singles but won No. 3 in 2013 and made the quarterfinals at No. 2 a year ago. Sophia Belardo returns as champion at No. 4, and McKenna Landis (No. 1 doubles) and Marta Colisimo (No. 4) were part of runner-up pairs last season at Nos. 2 and 4, respectively. Landis and Bianca Emde are the top seed at No. 1.
Okemos’ Emily Struble: The reigning champion at No. 1 singles is top-seeded and also won No. 2 as both a freshman and sophomore. She beat Aleck in three sets in last season’s championship match.
Mason’s Olivia Hanover: The Bulldogs’ sophomore enters as the second seed at No. 1 singles while playing her first Finals – her team didn’t make the tournament last season, when she played No. 2 singles behind 2012 No. 1 singles champion Abby Perkins.
Portage Central’s Lauren Lomax: She took Struble to 7-5, 6-3, in last season’s quarterfinal as a junior and returns as the fourth seed at No. 1 for the second straight season.
Fenton’s Madison Ballard: She took Aleck to three sets in last season’s semifinal at No. 1 and returns as the fifth seed after entering as the third in 2014.
DIVISION 3 at Holly/Fenton/Grand Blanc
Top ranked: 1. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, 2. Detroit Country Day, 3. Grand Rapids Christian.
Cranbrook Kingswood is looking to extend its championship streak to five straight. The Cranes cleared Detroit Country Day by 11 points last season, and Country Day also finished runner-up in 2011 after winning in 2010.
Cranbrook Kingswood: All eight flights are again seeded, but unlike last season – when the team had six top seeds – the Cranes have none. Four flights are seeded second, however, and six players were part of flight championships last season. Reigning No. 4 singles champion Jazz Teste is seeded third at No. 3 this weekend. Meg Phyle (No. 1 doubles) and Amanda Simmons (No. 2) won the No. 1 doubles championship last season; Simmons is now teaming with reigning No. 2 doubles champ Amanda Twu at that flight while 2014 No. 4 doubles runner-up Sloan Wysocki has joined Phyle at No. 1. Mackenzie Beckett is back at No. 3 doubles after being part of that champion last year and will pair with Sauma Du, who was the other half of the No. 4 runner-up.
Detroit Country Day: A strong singles lineup should key the Yellowjackets’ contention; No. 2 Haley Mullins, No. 3 Sadina Fadel and No. 4 Sarah Carroll all are top seeds, while No. 1 Sasha Hartje is a second seed. Mullins and Carroll were runners-up at the same flights in 2014, and Sharmila Prabhu was part of the runner-up pair at No. 3 doubles; she and Tara Tang are the fifth seed at that flight this weekend.
Grand Rapids Christian: The Eagles finished only four points behind Country Day last season and carry eight seeds into this weekend with powerful doubles teams. Three pairs are top-seeded: Olivia DeVos and Caroline Heule at No. 2, Natalie DeBoer and Kate Zwiers at No. 3 and Emily Schellenboom and Rachel Koopman at No. 4. DeVos and Heule were runners-up at No. 2 last season, and Koopman was part of the No. 4 champion.
Williamston’s Sara Daavettila: In last season’s No. 1 singles championship match, she dealt Cranbrook Kingswood’s Alexandria Najarian the latter’s only high school loss. Daavettila, a junior, is undefeated over her two-season high school career.
St. Clair’s Ally Winkler and Ally Kennedy: The top seeds at No. 1 carry plenty of experience, making the quarterfinals last season as the fifth seed. Winkler made the semifinals in 2013 with a different partner, when Kennedy and a different partner made the No. 2 doubles semis.
Other returning 2014 flight champions: Grosse Ile’s Kennedy Quinn (No. 4 singles in Division 4 in 2014, No. 3 singles in Division 3 this season), Grosse Ile’s Rose Tucker (No. 4 doubles in Division 4 in 2014, No. 2 doubles with Luna Terauchi in Division 3 this season).
DIVISION 4 at Holland
Top-ranked: 1. Bloomfield Hills Academy of the Sacred Heart, 2. Traverse City St. Francis, 3. Ludington.
Academy of the Sacred Heart is looking to return to the top after winning LP Division 4 in 2012 and 2013 and finishing sixth a year ago. St. Francis was third and Ludington fifth in 2014. Grosse Ile, last season’s champion, moved into Division 3 for this school year.
Academy of the Sacred Heart: Junior Jeannie Nash adds a top seed at No. 1 singles to four top-seeded doubles pairs: Selina Fuchs and Abby Hildebrand at No. 1, Sara Gerard and Kendall Gassman at No. 2, Tate Lehmann and Kathryn Monahan at No. 3 and Stella Betrus and Sarah Panone at No. 4. Gretchen Lemon was part of last season’s champion at No. 1 doubles, and this weekend she’s seeded fourth at No. 2 singles. Lehmann was the No. 4 singles champ in 2013.
Traverse City St. Francis: Four of the team’s five seeds are in singles, where Natalie Burke is the top seed at No. 3 and Anne Bandrowski the favorite at No. 4. Rosemary Wilson has an MHSAA flight championship to her credit, at No. 3 doubles last season; she and Nicole Ehardt are seeded fifth at No. 2.
Ludington: The Orioles also are seeded at five flights, with Julie Maltbie and Claire Flewelling at No. 2 doubles the highest as a second seed. They were runners-up up at No. 3 doubles last season. Brooke Schneider and Olivia Laman were last season’s champions at No. 2 doubles; this weekend, Schneider is playing No. 1 singles while Laman is teaming with Stephanie Kelley as a the sixth seed at No. 1 doubles.
Lansing Catholic’s Calla Ramont: Last season’s No. 1 singles runner-up is only the sixth seed heading into this weekend after entering the 2014 Final as a third seed. She won No. 3 singles in 2012.
Kalamazoo Christian’s Audrey Bouma: After winning No. 3 singles the last two seasons, Bouma is moving up to No. 2 – and is the top seed at that flight.
PHOTO: Okemos’ Emily Struble, here during last season’s No. 1 singles championship match at the Lower Peninsula Division 2 Final, is among a number of past winners looking to reign again.
Preview: Favorites Own Impressive Streaks, but Challengers Await
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
June 1, 2023
Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern is playing for a fourth-straight Lower Peninsula Girls Tennis Finals championship this weekend, with Ann Arbor Pioneer seeking a third straight in Division 1, Ann Arbor Greenhills going for the repeat in Division 4 and Detroit Country Day looking to rebound for a sixth Division 3 title over the last seven seasons.
But full brackets of contenders are seeking to stand in the way – including another reigning champion and No. 2-ranked teams either seeking their first Finals title or first in two decades.
All four divisions again will be played Friday and Saturday over multiple locations, with semifinals and finals to be played at the first sites listed below in each division.
Below is a glance at the highest-ranked teams in each division and additional No. 1 singles players expected to be in contention. Click for full brackets and more from MHSAA.com.
LP Division 1 at Hope College and Holland Christian High School
Top-ranked: 1. Ann Arbor Pioneer, 2. Troy, 3. Bloomfield Hills.
Ann Arbor Pioneer: The Pioneers have won two straight LPD1 championships, claiming last year’s outright after sharing with Bloomfield Hills in 2021. Those two titles came with sweeps of singles flight titles, and that’s a possibility again with junior Elsie Van Wieren seeded second at No. 1 and junior Bridgette Kelly, senior Juliana Pullen and freshman Sophia Liang seeded first at Nos. 2-4, respectively. Van Wieren won No. 2 the last two seasons, and Kelly won No. 4 the last two years. All four doubles pairs are seeded fourth or higher as well, with top seeds at No. 2 with juniors Eleanor Vogel and Casey Roe and No. 3 with sophomores Elita You and Arella He. Vogel was part of the No. 3 runner-up last season.
Troy: The Colts are seeking their first team championship since 2003 and finished third a year ago with three doubles pairs earning runner-up finishes. This weekend senior Grace Zhu and junior Nika Tanako are seeded first at No. 1, and junior Marin Fox and freshman Nainika Jasti are seeded first at No. 4, with the Nos. 2 and 3 pairs also earning top-three seeds. Zhu was part of last season’s No. 1 runner-up, and Tanako was part of the No. 2 runner-up pair, while 2022 No. 4 runners-up Vienna Thieu and Michelle Baik are playing this time at Nos. 2 and 3, respectively, with other partners. Two singles flights also are seeded, with senior Stephanie Ochoa fourth at No. 3 after playing doubles last season with Zhu.
Bloomfield Hills: After tying with Pioneer in 2021, Bloomfield Hills missed doing the same last season by one point. Three singles flights and one doubles pair are seeded this weekend, led by second-seeded junior Julia Yousif at No. 3 singles after she was runner-up at No. 4 last spring. Seniors Natalie Raab and Colleen Pettengill are seeded third at No. 1 doubles after Raab was part of the No. 2 champion and Pettengill part of the No. 4 winner a year ago. Freshman Prisha Lingam will debut as the fourth seed at No. 1 singles.
Sari Woo, Ann Arbor Skyline junior: She’s 15-1 this spring, with more than half of her wins by 6-0, 6-0 scores and the only loss a default. Woo finished No. 1 runner-up as a sixth-seeded freshman in 2021.
Nicole Fu, Rochester Adams sophomore: She’s the third seed at No. 1 singles for the second-straight season and after finishing runner-up a year ago.
LP Division 2 at Midland Tennis Center and Midland High School
Top-ranked: 1. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern, 2. Birmingham Seaholm, 3. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central.
Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern: The Huskies’ championship streak reached three last spring as they edged Seaholm by four points, and they enter this weekend with all eight flights seeded third or higher. Freshman Harriet Ogilvie will play her first Finals as the top seed at No. 4 singles, while juniors Ryan Morey and Paige McKenzie earned the top seed at No. 1 doubles and senior Maria Jacobs and sophomore Morgan McKenzie are top-seeded at No. 3. The team’s other three singles flights all are seeded third after moving up one flight coming off runner-up finishes in 2022 – junior Nathalie Lanne now at No. 1, sophomore Andrea Wang now at No. 2 and senior Miriam Ogilvie now at No. 3 after finishing second at No. 4 a year ago. Morey was part of last year’s No. 2 doubles champion and Paige McKenzie part of the runner-up at No. 4 with Ava Hamilton, who is part of this weekend’s third-seeded pair at No. 2.
Birmingham Seaholm: The runner-up last season and in 2019 is seeking its first title since 2018 with seven seeded flights including top-seeded juniors Katie Slazinski and Jenna Ting at No. 2 doubles and top-seeded junior Stella North and freshman Lucy Jen at No. 4. Slazinski was part of last season’s No. 2 doubles runner-up and Ting was part of the No. 4 champion. Seniors Tatum Hirsch and Ellie Wyzykowski are teaming up for the third seed at No. 1 doubles after Hirsch was part of last year’s No. 3 champion and Wyzykowski partnered with Slazinski at No. 2, and senior Sydney Fong is part of the third seed at No. 3 after teaming with Ting for that No. 4 title in 2022. Senior Madeleine Leo has moved to No. 1 singles after finishing as part of the No. 1 doubles runner-up last season.
Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central: The Rangers are expected to jump after finishing seventh last season, and all eight flights are seeded fifth or higher. Leading are junior Lily Ohlman with a second seed at No. 1 singles, sophomore Maggie Moog and freshman Clare Knoester with the second seed at No. 4 doubles, and freshman Chloe Cox as the third seed at No. 4 singles. Ohlman made the No. 2 singles quarterfinals last season.
Helaina Pietrowsky, Grosse Pointe North senior: She’s the top seed at No. 1 singles in her third season playing that flight, and she’s 14-3 with two losses to Division 1 players and the third by default. She made the quarterfinals last season as a sixth seed.
Allison Wootton, Portage Northern senior: She’s also in her third season at the top flight and the No. 4 seed this time, entering this weekend 24-2.
LP Division 3 at University of Michigan and Dexter High School
Top-ranked: 1. Detroit Country Day, 2. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, 3. Grand Rapids Christian.
Detroit Country Day: The Yellowjackets moved up to the top spot in the rankings this week after tying Cranbrook for the Regional title. They finished fifth at the Final a year ago coming off five straight LPD3 championships, and will be back in the hunt with all four singles flights second-seeded and three top seeds and a third seed at doubles. Juniors Peja Liles and Marin Norlander are the top seed at No. 1 doubles – Liles was part of the champion at that flight last year and Norlander part of the runner-up at No. 2 – while senior Alyssa Rahmani and freshman Noor Mahmoud are the top seed at No. 3 and senior Josie Pachla and freshman Jiya Gill are the top seed at No. 4. Norlander’s partner last year, senior Aryasai Radhakrishnan, is part of the third seed at No. 2 and she and Norlander won No. 2 in 2021, while Rahmani was part of the champion at No. 3 in 2021. Sophomore Sophia Grzesiak is the second seed at No. 1 singles after also playing that flight as a freshman.
Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood: The reigning champion won last season with 37 points – 16 more than the field – and will try to withstand challenges this time with eight seeded flights including three tops seeds and two flights seeded second. Junior Sienna Ilitch is the top seed at No. 3 singles after winning that flight last season and finishing runner-up as a freshman, and junior Olivia Zhang is the top seed at No. 4 also as the reigning champion and runner-up in 2021. Junior Grace Zhang and sophomore Sophia Kouza are top-seeded at No. 2 doubles, Zhang coming off last season’s championship at No. 3 with sophomore Ava Clogg, the fifth seed this time at No. 1 singles. Juniors Daryn Krause and Kayli Lala – who teamed for the No. 4 doubles title last year – are seeded second this time at No. 1
Grand Rapids Christian: The Eagles are seeking their first championship and also looking to break back into the top two for the first time since a third-straight runner-up finish in 2017. They’ve been bolstered substantially by freshman Brynn Uchman, who enters as the top seed at No. 1 singles and 26-0 without reaching a third set this spring. Junior Natalie Poortenga is the top seed at No. 2 for the second-straight season and reached the semifinals a year ago. Five other flights are seeded as well.
Julia Gurne, Portland Notre Dame Prep junior: The third seed at No. 1 singles made the quarterfinals as the third seed last season and was the No. 1 runner-up as a freshman.
Aly Aldrich, Otsego junior: She’s up to the fourth seed at No. 1 singles this weekend after finishing runner-up a year ago as the sixth seed.
LP Division 4 at Kalamazoo College and Western Michigan
Top-ranked: 1. Ann Arbor Greenhills, 2. Traverse City St. Francis, 3. Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard.
Ann Arbor Greenhills: The Gryphons were champions for the first time since 2017 last season, distancing themselves from the field by nine points, and are in position to repeat with all eight flights seeded first or second and most experienced at the Finals level. Sophomore Maddie Morgan made the semifinals at No. 1 singles last season as a third seed and moves to the top line this weekend, while sophomore Shangyang Xia is the top seed at No. 2 after winning that flight a year ago. Freshman Danica Rakic-Dennis is the top seed at No. 3, and senior Manassa Golapalli is the second seed at No. 4 after finishing runner-up at that flight in 2022. Reigning No. 3 singles champion Sophie Chen has moved to No. 1 doubles as a sophomore and is paired with freshman Lauren Ye as the top seed. Sophomore Sophia Kleer and junior Parini Rao are second-seeded at No. 2 doubles after both were part of runner-up pairs a year ago at Nos. 2 and 3, respectively. Second-seeded No. 3 pair Meera Tewari and Meera Pandey, both sophomores, are a combo of a reigning No. 4 doubles champ and Rio’s partner at No. 3 last season, respectively, and freshmen Arya Prabhakar and Aoife Tang are debuting at the Finals as the second seed at No. 4.
Traverse City St. Francis: The Gladiators tied for 11th last season but have finished runner-up four times over the last eight years. They’ll make their run this time with four seeded flights including senior Audrey Lee on the top line at No. 4 singles. Only three of 12 starters are seniors, so St. Francis should remain in the hunt moving forward as well.
Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard: The Irish went from unranked to No. 3 in the final poll, and should jump after tying for 13th last season. FGR has only one senior among its starters, but all four singles players are seeded including three in second slots – freshman Jenny Florea at No. 1, senior Vivian Heegan at No. 2 and freshman Kenna Trost at No. 3. Heegan made the quarterfinals last season at No. 1 while unseeded.
Maggie Page, Jackson Lumen Christi senior: She’s returning as the third seed at No. 1 singles after winning a match at that flight last season while unseeded and going 21-1 this season with her only loss to Florea.
Ayva Johnstone, Elk Rapids junior: She’s also back at the top singles flight, this time as the fourth seed after entering as the fifth seed a year ago.
Jadyn Koenes, Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian senior: She’s the fifth seed at No. 1 singles after reaching the quarterfinals last season as a sixth seed.
PHOTO Otsego’s Aly Aldrich returns a volley during a match day this spring. (Photo by Gary Shook.)