Westlake Rallies to Clinch Tie for Title

Westlake High, ranked first in the Southern Section Division III poll, defeated Simi Valley, 10-8, on Thursday and clinched a tie for the Marmonte League girls’ tennis championship at North Ranch Country Club.

To do it, the Warriors (15-0, 10-0 in league play) needed come-from-behind victories by freshman Nina Yaftali at No. 1 singles and the No. 2 doubles team of Jaclyn Kansky and Nicole Mead.

Mindy Gondrez of Simi Valley (13-3, 8-2) let a 5-3 lead slip away against Yaftali, and lost four consecutive points to lose a 5-3 lead in a tiebreaker, giving Yaftali a 7-6 (7-5) victory.

It was the only defeat for Gondrez.

Kansky and Mead won the last three games to defeat Margo O’Donnell and Courtney Lind, 7-5, for their only victory.

“The kids played really well on both teams,” said Coach Connie Flanderka of Westlake.

In other girls’ tennis matches:

Granada Hills 7, San Fernando 0--Jasmin Dao and Michal Zeituni shut out their singles opponents for the Highlanders in a Northwest Valley Conference match at San Fernando.

Shannon Slotnick and Valerie Ramirez scored an 8-0 victory at No. 1 doubles for Granada Hills (11-0, 7-0).

Van Nuys 7, Reseda 0--Diana Friedland and Tinna Chung won by 8-0 scores at No. 1 and No. 2 singles for the Wolves (10-1, 8-0), who recorded their 10th consecutive victory in a Valley Pac-8 Conference match at Van Nuys.

Camarillo 13, Rio Mesa 5--The Scorpions (12-4, 8-0) won seven of nine doubles matches, including three victories by the No. 2 team of Dena Aldrich and Margaret Hsieh, in a Pacific View League victory at Camarillo.

GIRLS’ VOLLEYBALL

Royal def. Thousand Oaks, 15-11, 15-10, 15-10--Courtney Guerra had 15 kills and the Highlanders clinched their first outright Marmonte League title since 1991.

Teresa Russell had eight kills for Royal (22-3, 11-0), ranked No. 2 in the region by The Times.

Jen Corral had 11 kills for Thousand Oaks (15-9, 6-4), which had 10 aces.

Village Christian def. Paraclete, 11-15, 15-8, 15-7, 15-7--The Crusaders clinched a tie for their first Alpha League championship since 1991 by winning at Paraclete.

Errin Benesh, who has committed to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, had 24 kills and 27 digs for the Crusaders.

Melinda Archer added 11 kills and Jennie Greslie finished with 10 for Village Christian (12-2, 4-0), ranked No. 7 in the region by The Times.

Notre Dame def. Flintridge Sacred Heart, 15-8, 15-10, 17-19, 15-4--Stephanie Berger had five of her 15 kills in the second game to help send the Knights to a Mission League victory at Notre Dame.

Sarah Braga had three aces in the first game and two in the final game for Notre Dame (12-3, 6-2), ranked No. 8 in the region by The Times.

La Reina def. St. Bonaventure, 15-9, 15-10, 15-7--The Regents clinched a tie for their seventh consecutive Tri-Valley League championship in a match at St. Bonaventure.

Jennifer Ryan had six kills for the Regents (16-0, 8-0), ranked No. 5 in the region by The Times.

Granada Hills def. Taft, 15-6, 14-16, 6-15, 15-4, 15-10--Kim Carpenter had five of her 10 kills in the fourth game to help Granada Hills rally in a Northwest Valley Conference match at Taft.

Middle blocker Michelle Ferrucci, who has committed to Oregon, missed the match for Granada Hills (8-2, 6-1) because of a head cold.

Harvard-Westlake def. Alemany, 15-10, 11-15, 15-12, 15-4--The Wolverines, ranked No. 1 in the region by The Times, struggled but clinched a tie for the Mission League title in a match at Alemany.

Chrissy Centeno had 11 kills and five blocks for Alemany (6-8, 2-6).

GIRLS’ GOLF

Nordhoff 143, Dos Pueblos 151, Carpinteria 172--Beth Allen fired a four-over par 39 at Glen Annie Country Club in Santa Barbara to help the Rangers (20-8, 12-8) clinch the Tri-Valley League title and a berth in the Southern Section Northern Regional on Nov. 9 at Village Country Club in Lompoc.