GIRLS’ TENNIS : Top Two Ousted in Semifinals

The top two seeds limped out of the San Diego Section girls’ individual singles tennis tournament Thursday.

The top seed, junior Barbara Valkova of Grossmont High, was in tears and hobbling on a sore knee after losing to third-seeded Tami Byrd of San Pasqual, 6-0, 6-3, in the semifinals at Poway High.

Junior Betsy Miringoff of Torrey Pines, second-seeded player and defending champion, fell to fourth-seeded Vanessa Rooks of Monte Vista, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1, in the other semifinal.

Miringoff tripped and fell in the second game of the third set and said she wasn’t the same after that.

“I just lost my confidence after that,” Miringoff said. “I don’t think I ran out of steam in the third. It just wasn’t my day.”

Miringoff struggled with her serve, especially in the third set. If she wasn’t double-faulting, Miringoff was usually hitting short second serves that Rooks blasted.

It was 5-0 in the third before Miringoff won a game.

“I felt pretty confident after winning the second set and then the first game of third,” Rooks said.

Rooks’ victory avenges a semifinal loss to Miringoff in last year’s tournament and keeps Miringoff from becoming only the third girl to repeat as section singles champion.

Valkova, a transfer student from Prague, Czechoslovakia, had never heard of the CIF championships but she badly wanted to win.

In her quarterfinal victory over Erin Lowrey of USDHS Wednesday, Valkova fell and injured a muscle in the back of her knee.

“All night, I didn’t sleep,” Valkova said. “I just put ice on it. But it wasn’t working.”

But with an immobile Valkova and a sharp Byrd, the match was never close.

“I played terrible,” Valkova said. “I figured (the knee) would be better during the match.”

Byrd, senior transfer from Charleston, S.C., didn’t have much sympathy for Valkova’s injury.

“I didn’t know she was hurt,” Byrd said. “Obviously, she felt up to coming out and playing.”

The doubles final will be a rematch of last year. Top-seeded Erin Bohrnstedt and Allison McNellis of Torrey Pines will meet their teammates, second-seeded Kelly and Kristen McCracken.

Bohrnstedt and McNellis defeated the fourth-seeded team of Renee and Elena Gold of La Jolla, 6-1, 6-3. The McCrackens beat eighth-seeded Ann Pangan and Jessica Wolf of Bonita Vista, 6-2, 6-0.

Today’s doubles finals begin at Rancho Arbolitos in Poway at 1 p.m. The singles final will follow.