CLEVELAND, Ohio – The lids on hundreds of cans of tennis balls are about to be peeled back, releasing that whooshing sound synonymous with the start of a fresh tennis season. The strings will be tight and the grips will be sweat-stain free when tennis season in Northeast Ohio kicks off Friday.
Here’s a breakdown of some of the top storylines, teams and players to check out this season.
Top storylines
New year, new faces
Lakewood's Kelli Pariano, Lincoln West's Mandi Asbury and Southeast's Angela Savinda are among local coaches in their first year at the helm of their respective program.
A long time in the making
Cuyahoga Falls' Ray Montgomery is entering his 33rd year as a varsity tennis coach. He opens this season with a 456-164 record at Cuyahoga Falls and a 754-296 career record.
St. Joseph looks to entire new lineup
St. Joseph Academy lost its entire starting lineup due to graduation. The Jaguars will look to senior duo Allison Saracina and Molly McAfee to step up in the doubles position, junior Colleen FitzGerald to take the reigns in singles and Evansville Memorial (Ind.) transfer Hannah Schuette to make an impact.
Westlake under new management
This will be the first season in 18 years that Ralph Dunbar will not be at the helm of Westlake's girls tennis program. The 15-time Southwestern Conference coach of the year stepped down from his position so he can watch his daughter, Julia, play at Siena College.
Teams to watch
Hathaway Brown: State singles champion Ariana Iranpour graduated, but Lauren Gillinov is known as a fierce competitor. A state qualifier last season, Gillinov will lead the Blazers.
Magnificat: The Blue Streaks will need to fill the void of a graduated Emily Witt, who helped her team rise to No. 8 in the state poll last season. Magnificat will do so with three solid singles players in senior Lauren O'Malley, junior Tess Moran and freshman Alexandra Vesikallio. O'Malley and Moran combined for a 45-11 record last season.
Orange: The Lions return both of their doubles teams, including the state champion duo of Alissa Nakamoto and Adrian Young. Nakamoto's baseline strength and Young's net presence will be one of the toughest combinations to overcome for teams in Northeast Ohio and throughout the state.
Solon: The Comets return just two starters, but they're still capable of grabbing the W.
Walsh Jesuit: The Warriors return four starters, including sophomores Paige Carmichael and Caroline Dickinson. With fellow sophomore and 2013 state qualifier Molly Sandberg guiding the singles portion of the team, look to senior Emily Hissong, who has built a deserving reputation, to lead the doubles teams.
Players to watch
Danielle Buchinsky, Laurel: The Gators' No. 1 singles player finished fourth at state, making her the top returning player. Her will to win (she went 21-2 in the 2013 regular season) and her sound strokes should propel her deep into this season too.
Emily Dunbar, Cloverleaf: The daughter of a tennis pro and three-time Division I Ohio tennis champion, Dunbar blew through last regular season undefeated, giving up only one game. Will anyone be able to top her quick footwork and fluid groundstrokes ?
Lauren Gillinov, Hathaway Brown: Even though she played behind a state champion last season, Gillinov made quite the name for herself. And this year, she's only a sophomore. The road ahead looks wide open for the underclassman in the brown and gold.
Lauren O'Malley, Magnificat: Three years ago, O'Malley was the deciding point in a match against Westlake that determined if her team went to state or not. She won the point and hasn't let the pressure faze her since. A state qualifier last year, O'Malley is one of the most mentally tough in Northeast Ohio.
Alissa Nakamoto, Orange: Solid and sound groundstrokes are the key to Nakamoto's game.
Molly Sandberg, Walsh Jesuit: Consistency is the name of this sophomore's all-court game.
Jamie Vizelman, Mayfield: The News-Herald's 2013 player of the year is a three-time state qualifier who posted a 19-2 regular season record last year. She leads Mayfield from the No. 1 spot.
Adrian Young, Orange: Young possesses a fierce net presence and isn't afraid to attack or poach.
Follow our new high school sports Twitter account @NEOvarsity and tag your high school sports tweets and score updates with the #NEOvarsity hashtag.
Contact high school sports reporter Stephanie Kuzydym by email (skuzydym@cleveland.com) or on Twitter (@stephkuzy). Or log in and leave a message in the comments section below.
Ad Choices