Laguna Beach Is Doubles Trouble for Chadwick

Top-seeded Laguna Beach opened its quest for a third consecutive Southern Section Division V tennis title with an easy 16-2 victory over previously undefeated Calvary Chapel Saturday.

The host Artists (12-7) won all nine doubles sets and advanced to the quarterfinals on Tuesday against Palos Verdes Chadwick.

Calvary Chapel (19-1), the Olympic League champion, got both its points from senior Casey Conrad at No. 3 singles. Conrad, a transfer from El Modena, defeated Nicole Johnson, 6-0, and upset Laguna Beach’s No. 1 player, Lindsey Butterwick, 7-5. She lost to No. 2 Camerin Barron-Sandman, 6-1.

The Artists have played Carpinteria Cate in the final the last two years and expect to meet the second-seeded Rams this season. But they are trying not to overlook anyone along the way, even Calvary Chapel.

“Their 19-0 record caught our attention and they also beat Malibu, 18-0,” Butterwick said. “We never get too overconfident.”

There were those who thought the Artists’ dominance of Division V would last only two years because of the departure of No. 1 singles player Ashley Maddocks, who is attending the Weil Tennis Academy in Ojai.

But Laguna Beach finished second in the Pacific Coast League to Corona del Mar, the county’s No. 1 team, and tied in sets with Beverly Hills, the top-seeded team in Division II and the champion of the National High School Tournament two months ago.

Laguna Beach’s doubles teams, which won nine sets against Beverly Hills, lost only eight games Saturday. The No. 1 team of Meghan MacGillray and Caroline Tucker won, 6-1, 6-0, 6-0.