SOUTHERN SECTION GIRLS’ TENNIS : Despite Bad Start, Laguna Beach Advances

El Modena’s singles players put quite a scare into Laguna Beach, Orange County’s top-ranked girls’ tennis team, Tuesday afternoon at Laguna Beach. After one round, they had won all three sets and had Laguna Beach Coach Bob Walton scurrying around, adding up total games, in case the set score ended at 9-9.

But a key singles victory by Laguna Beach’s No. 1 player, Michelle Bray, and six doubles victories stopped Walton’s pacing and gave second-seeded Laguna Beach the cushion it needed to defeat El Modena, 12-6, in the Southern Section Division II quarterfinals at Alta Laguna Park.

The Artists (20-3) advance to Thursday’s semifinals to meet unseeded Diamond Bar. The El Modena loss ended the 19-year coaching career of Art Green at the school. The Vanguards finished 16-2.

But Walton acknowledged that he thought his season was the one that might be ending.

“For a minute there, I thought we were going to have to win all nine doubles matches just to tie,” he said.

But Bray gave Laguna Beach its first singles victory with 6-3 decision over Holli Freudenberg. In the first round, Bray was beaten by Holli’s sister, Brandi, 6-0.

“That was expected,” Bray said of her loss to Brandi. “I was really nervous, but that seemed to get all the nerves out and get me ready to play against Holli.”

While Bray was winning, Laguna Beach’s doubles teams were well on their way to a third consecutive playoff sweep of all nine sets. The teams of Ashley Smith-Tara Kuhnert, Sarah Cohen-Ahlie Gravely and Stacey Seybold-Heather Holmes dropped only five of 59 games in their nine victories.

“It’s great for the doubles to get some recognition,” Walton said. “That’s what wins matches in the playoffs.”