New Trier’s Amia Ross (left) and Ali Benedetto celebrate during the third-place doubles match at the Class 2A state tournament. They won the match 6-2, 7-5 to claim third place. PHOTOGRAPHY BY PATRICK GORSKI
Amia Ross looked back — and then way back — at the end of the Class 2A girls state tennis tournament last weekend.
And the New Trier senior doubles player reflected with a look of disbelief.
“I never could have imagined this, being a No. 1 seed [with sophomore doubles partner Ali Benedetto], being undefeated before this meet,” Ross said at Buffalo Grove High School on Oct. 21.
“When I started to play tennis, everybody was better than I was.”
Ross bettered her 2016 state doubles finish (with Michelle Capone, Class of 2019) by two spots, taking third with a 6-2, 7-5 defeat of Hinsdale Central’s Sarah Badawi and Kathryn Treiber in the final match of her prep career.
Whitney Young’s Camryn Salter and Darinka Stepan had upset the pair of Trevians 6-4, 2-6, 7-5 in a state semifinal earlier in the day. Midway through the third set, the chair umpire announced the score in a game; Ross/Benedetto believed it was the incorrect score.
The umpire’s call stood.
Whitney Young’s duo wound up winning the game.
Ross/Benedetto (21-1) later fell behind 4-2 in the clincher, knotted it at 5-5 and saved two match points before shaking hands with Dolphins after the third match point.
“Tough loss, tough loss,” Trevians coach Jerry Morse-Karzen said. “Whitney Young played well. We thought we could pick on one of the players, but she rose to the occasion.
“That was commendable, our girls fighting back from a difficult situation. They had a great season; they had great chemistry. They liked to play together, and they were very supportive of each other. A very, very good partnership.”
Benedetto made the state series team a year ago as a singles player, advancing to state and winning one of three matches. She and Ross did not drop a set in their first four matches at state last weekend.
Their collective spirit did not head south after that frustrating semifinal loss.
“Resilience,” Benedetto said. “We showed that in the match for third place.”
Benedetto displayed her quick reflexes — a handy companion, particularly in doubles — throughout the weekend.
“You never think a point is over with Ali Benedetto on your side,” Ross said. “She has great hands, great touch, and she knows exactly where the ball has to go in a point.”
NT’s other state entrant, juniors Emily Dale/Claire Gottreich, went 2-2 in doubles.
New Trier finished in a tie for sixth place (15 points) with Glenbard West.
Amia Ross (left) and Ali Benedetto receive rounds of applause from their fans after winning doubles match for third place. PHOTOGRAPHY BY PATRICK GORSKI
Amia Ross follows through on a forehand return. PHOTOGRAPHY BY PATRICK GORSKI
Ali Benedetto focuses on punching a forehand volley. PHOTOGRAPHY BY PATRICK GORSKI
Amia Ross pumps a fist after winning a point. PHOTOGRAPHY BY PATRICK GORSKI
Ali Benedetto reacts following a point. PHOTOGRAPHY BY PATRICK GORSKI
Amia Ross cracks a serve. PHOTOGRAPHY BY PATRICK GORSKI
Ali Benedetto rips a topspin forehand. PHOTOGRAPHY BY PATRICK GORSKI
Amia Ross drives a forehand groundstroke. PHOTOGRAPHY BY PATRICK GORSKI
Ali Benedetto and her fluffy friend enjoy the moment. PHOTOGRAPHY BY PATRICK GORSKI
Highland Park: Only one point separated the fourth-place Giants from the third-place Red Devils of Hinsdale Central at the Class 2A state tennis meet.
Only the top three schools — co-champions Stevenson and Whitney Young, along with HC — left Buffalo Grove High School with hardware on Oct. 21.
What has to be encouraging for Giants coach Steve Rudman and HPHS girls tennis fans — each of the school’s six state qualifiers has at least one year of eligibility remaining.
The duo of junior Monique Brual and sophomore Samara Michael reached the quarterfinals in doubles and finished with a 5-2 mark at state, accounting for seven of the team’s 19 points. Junior singles entrant Caitlin Goldberg went 2-1 in the front draw and 2-1 in the back draw.
HPHS junior Lily Tiemeyer split four singles matches, and the doubles team of Halle Michael, a sophomore, and Mia Logrande, a junior, contributed three team points with a first-round win and a victory in the back draw.
Lake Forest High School: The life of Kiley?
A highly successful one, if you were to look only at what Kiley Rabjohns had accomplished as a Scouts freshman tennis player this fall.
Rabjohns — seeded 3-4 at last weekend’s state meet — rebounded nicely and resolutely from a 6-2, 6-3 quarterfinal loss (her only loss of the entire season) to Deerfield junior and 5-8 seed Emily Casati at the state meet on Oct. 20.
Focused and quietly confident, Rabjohns defeated Hinsdale Central’s Olivia Oosterbaan 6-2, 6-0 and Stevenson’s Zoe Taylor 6-4, 6-2 in her first two back-draw matches and then edged Wheaton Warrenville South junior Samantha Choi 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 in the match for fifth place at Buffalo Grove High School on Oct. 21.
“When matches get tight, some players wither,” LFHS coach Denise Murphy said. “Not Kiley. She stands taller and swings more loosely, goes for more.
“It was so exciting to see this season … to see Kiley control her emotions and her strokes on the court,” the coach added. “What she did this weekend was a reflection of her awesome family, her confidence and her belief in herself.”
Rabjohns lost a combined five games in her first three matches before facing Casati (26-3), the eventual third-place finisher, for a second time this season (Rabjohns won their first meeting 6-4, 2-6, 10-8 in a super tiebreaker).
“I tried to stay positive and strong all weekend,” Rabjohns said. “I heard cheering, lots of it from teammates, and I loved it; it helped me a lot. The team was always there for me.”
The Scouts’ other state entrant — sophomore doubles players Salma Alsikafi and Nika Belova — bowed 6-1, 6-1 to second-seeded and eventual state champions Elizabeth Stefancic and Maria Goheen in the first round but collected four straight wins in the back draw, including two decided by a super tiebreaker (in lieu of a third set).
LFHS finished in a tie for 10th place (13 points) with Deerfield and Evanston.
Loyola Academy: The Ramblers’ lone state qualifier — the doubles team of Maggie Hines/Elizabeth Witkowski — won two matches in the front draw and two more in the consolation bracket at the Class 2A state meet. Hines, a senior, and Witkowski, a junior, reached the consolation quarterfinal round at state after finishing third at the Niles West Sectional on Oct. 14.