Elliott Overcame Early Distractions : Girls’ tennis: Despite preseason tonsillectomy and recruiting trip, Dana Hills standout reached semifinals in Southern Section individual singles.

When the Southern Section girls’ tennis season began in September, Nicole Elliott was slow getting into a groove.

Just before the start of school, the Dana Hills senior underwent a tonsillectomy and took a recruiting trip to California, one of several universities that have offered her a tennis scholarship.

Thus, Elliott said she spent very little time on the tennis court preparing for the high school season.

“In the beginning I knew I was going to have some trouble,” said Elliott, 17, The Times’ county girls’ tennis player of the year. “But I knew I’d get my timing back after a while and start playing my normal game.”

That she did. By the time the section’s individual singles championships got under way in late November, Elliott was in top form. She breezed through the tournament, advancing to the semifinals where she met Ania Blezynski of Los Angeles Marlborough, who had eliminated Elliott in the Round of 16 last year.

This time, Elliott got the upper hand with a 7-6 (7-3), 4-6, 6-3 victory in a match that lasted 2 hours 40 minutes. Elliott was physically drained, but she still had the final match to play later that day. She gave it a go, but San Marino’s Nicole Hummel, a three-time finalist, easily scored a 6-0, 6-2 victory.

Elliott remembers wondering whether she could recover in time from the semifinal match to face Hummel, who last year lost in the final to former Dana Hills standout Anne Mall, now at UCLA.

“I had such a long match (against Blezynski),” Elliott said. “I went to get something to eat. After I sat down a while, I got pretty stiff. It took me a while to get going again. Actually, I never got going.

“I think if we had played on a different day, I would have given her a little better match. I was happy I got to the finals, but, yeah, I was disappointed that I really didn’t do as well as I wanted to.”

But Elliott did enjoy an exceptionally successful high school career, finishing 66-4 as a junior and 66-5 as a senior. And the year before, as a sophomore at Our Lady of Peace in San Diego, Elliott was 57-1. Her only defeat was in the San Diego Section semifinals.

Three of her losses this year were against Page Bartelt of Capistrano Valley, including a 6-1, 6-0 defeat in the South Coast League individual final that Dana Hills Coach John Stephens said helped Elliott get motivated for the section championships.

“Losing to Page for the third time (in sets) is when she finally decided to work extra hard and she got really focused,” Stephens said. “She had been playing very well over the summer, but then she took a month off and it took her some time to get her level of play back up.”

Elliott helped the Dolphins to a second-place finish in league behind Capistrano Valley and to the Division 4-A team semifinals, where they lost to eventual champion Peninsula, 16-2. Elliott had the only two victories, beating highly regarded Janet Lee and Amanda Augustus, both at 6-2.

“She was a great role model for the team,” Stephens said. “She was willing to play in all the matches. You don’t find that with all the quality players in high school.”

Elliott says she will continue to work on her game in preparation for collegiate tennis and will play in U.S. Tennis Assn. tournaments in the 18-and-under division. The national rankings for 1991 won’t be announced by the USTA until January, but last year, Elliott was ranked 28th in the 16-and-under division.

“I have to improve on playing points, on the mental aspects, like when to hit certain shots,” Elliott said.

Many of her opponents could swear she already does those things awfully well.

All-County Girls’ Tennis

FIRST-TEAM SINGLES

Player School Yr. Comment Erika Asmuss Mater Dei Jr. Has never lost in league matches. Page Bartelt Capistrano Valley Sr. Had 182-21 record in high school. Nicole Elliott Dana Hills Sr. Saved best for Southern Section tournament.

FIRST-TEAM DOUBLES

Player School Yr. Comment Lisa Shulga Capistrano Valley Sr. Advanced to Southern Section quarterfinals. Farrah Tierney Capistrano Valley Sr. Cathy Aagaard Sonora So. Experience and youth blended well. Vumi Takei Sonora Sr. Toowee Cao Marina Sr. Made it to Southern Section Round of 16. Wendy Gratteau Marina Jr.

SECOND-TEAM SINGLES

Player School Yr. Comment Joyce Cruz Rosary Jr. Helped team to Southern Section 2-A finals. Brandi Freudenberg El Modena Fr. Reached Southern Section individual semifinals. Amanda Parson Foothill Sr. Was 57-1 in regular season.

SECOND-TEAM DOUBLES

Player School Yr. Comment Renee Bergeron Los Alamitos Sr. Played their way to Round of 16. Veronica Selby Los Alamitos So. Trisha Abe Mater Dei Jr. Undefeated in league two years in a row. Kim Conter Mater Dei Sr. Erika Anhood Corona del Mar Sr. Won Sea View League doubles title. Sara Cicerone Corona del Mar Sr.

Honorable mention: Singles--Nina Basica (Fountain Valley), Michelle Berkowitz (Fountain Valley), Rachel Buenviaje (Brea-Olinda), Mara Colaizzi (Newport Harbor), Grace Fu (Pacifica), Jeanette Fylpaa (University); Karen Galvin (Sunny Hills), Mandy Gomez (Rosary), Susan Huberman (Los Alamitos), Valerie Palmero (Los Alamitos). Doubles--Andrea Claus-Jane Park (Foothill), Veronica Felix-Sonia Ramirez (Santiago), Kristina Grigatis-Lauren Weaver (Estancia), Ann Risquez-Houng Le (Woodbridge), Meredith Volt-Erica Ladne (Los Alamitos).