SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION I GIRLS’ TENNIS : Corona del Mar Defeats Dana Hills

Second-seeded Dana Hills was expected to give third-seeded Corona del Mar a tough match Thursday, especially since it had defeated the Sea Kings this season.

Dana Hills also expected to win at least four singles sets.

But the Dolphins’ three freshman singles players didn’t meet expectations, and Corona del Mar’s No. 3 singles player Alissa Scott surpassed hers.

The result? A lopsided 12-6 victory by Corona del Mar in the Southern Section Division I girls’ semifinals at Corona del Mar High.

“I didn’t think I’d win all three sets,” Scott said. “I don’t have a lot of confidence in myself. I was pretty nervous, especially against their No. 1 player (Lara Spica.)”

But the nerves didn’t show. Scott, whose sister Danielle plays on the women’s pro tennis tour, won her sets with ease, 6-3, 6-1, 6-1.

“She really picked up her game,” Corona del Mar Coach Julie Slattery said of Scott. “She played a lot of tournaments over the summer and she’s peaked toward the end of the season.”

Scott said she owes her improvement to a story she read about Irvine’s Sarah Denson and the mental side of tennis.

“Once I read that article, I realized playing tennis was a lot more mental than anything,” she said. “I started working hard on my mental game.”

Corona del Mar’s other two singles players, No. 1 Nina Vaughan and No. 2 Megan Wachtler, were also on top of their mental games. Vaughan won, 6-1, 6-3, 6-2, and Wachtler won, 6-2, 6-1, 6-0.

“Their singles players seemed to be a little more match tough,” Dana Hills Coach John Stephens said. “We played tight and the inexperience created a lot of mistakes.”

Dana Hills’ points came in doubles, three of them from the No. 1 team of Michele Johnson and Katie Tierney, who won, 6-4, 6-4, 6-0.

The points won’t come as easily for Corona del Mar (17-4-1) in Tuesday’s 9 a.m. final at the Claremont Club against Palos Verdes Peninsula (23-0), which has won three consecutive Division I titles and has five nationally ranked players.

“If they don’t have their full lineup, it could be close,” Slattery said.

In another Division I semifinal:

Palos Verdes Peninsula 17, Woodbridge 1--As expected, top-seeded Peninsula dominated visiting Woodbridge, which finished the season at 18-5.