Reitz Beats Exon and Lingman to Win Title

Two months ago, Brittany Reitz was waiting to regain her eligibility. Today, the Corona del Mar junior is the Southern Section individual singles champion.

Reitz, who sat out the first six weeks of the season after transferring from St. Margaret’s, handily defeated Woodbridge High’s Elizabeth Exon and Susanna Lingman to win the title Friday at the Claremont Club.

The third-seeded Reitz beat Exon, 6-1, 6-2, in the semifinals and the top-seeded Lingman, 6-3, 6-1, in a one-hour final. She became the first Orange County player to win the singles title since Anne Mall of Dana Hills in 1990.

There was nothing flashy about the way Reitz went through Exon and Lingman. She simply played a steady, almost boring brand of baseline tennis. Meanwhile, Lingman’s ground strokes were erratic and she held her serve only twice the entire match.

“She didn’t miss,” said Lingman, who didn’t lose a set in a dual match all season. “I couldn’t hit a ball in the court and I wasn’t consistent. I went for balls I shouldn’t have.”

Lingman held serve to start the match, but she quickly got in trouble by losing the next three games. Reitz, who hadn’t beaten Lingman in two previous meetings, said she had no plans to lose.

“I was focused from the moment I went on the court,” she said. “I wanted to give it everything I had. I literally wanted to be carried off the court if I was to lose. But I never assumed I’d win until the last point.”

And Reitz never assumed she would make such quick work of Lingman.

“I was surprised she made as many errors as she did,” Reitz said. “Susanna is an excellent player. It’s a privilege to be on the same court with her.”

Lingman lost the first three games of the second set, but she appeared to be gaining some momentum in the fourth game as she hit two clean winners down the line and began to connect on her first serve. But on game point, Lingman’s out call on a Reitz approach shot was overruled by the chair umpire. Reitz went on to win the game.

“I started playing aggressively too late and there were a few key points I didn’t win,” Lingman said. “I didn’t hit deep enough and I let her push me back. She throws you off with the spin. I didn’t feel like I was ever in my groove.”

Reitz, who played briefly last year at Mater Dei, regained her eligibility Oct. 15 and qualified for the individual tournament by playing the required five Pacific Coast League matches. She lost to teammate Anne Yelsey in the PCL final, but went on to win the section tournament by winning her next six matches in straight sets.

“I didn’t come in and steal [the tournament],” Reitz said. “I thought I was a top contender like everyone else.”

Lingman, who defeated Carpinteria Cate’s Lori Stern in the other semifinal, 6-3, 6-2, thought she would end her high school career in style.

“I played the best I could,” said the Harvard-bound Lingman. “It’s disappointing, but I’ll live.”

In the doubles final, Palos Verdes Peninsula seniors Christine Setian and Jamie Pagliano upset the defending champions, Sandra and Carla Rocha of Claremont, 6-1, 2-6, 6-3.

Setian and Pagliano, seeded second, saved a match point in the semifinals to outlast Corona del Mar’s Leslie Damion and Brittany Holland, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (6).

The Rochas reached the final with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Los Alamitos’ Gia Nafarrete and Melissa Selmanson.