Lederman Keeps Battling

Josh Lederman played two hard-fought matches at the 103rd Ojai tournament Thursday, but his opponents weren’t all he battled.

Lederman, a sophomore at North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake High, suffers from Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare condition that causes nerve inflammation and affects muscle strength, balance and coordination. In severe cases, the disorder can cause paralysis and be life-threatening if the diaphragm and breathing are affected.

Lederman’s case, diagnosed eight months ago, has been termed “mild to moderate” by his neurologist.

But the recovery process has been slow and is incomplete.

Lederman, the Wolverines’ No. 3 singles player for most of the season, got past Julian Tiangco of Torrance Bishop Montgomery, 6-4, 7-5, in the first round but was stopped short, 6-0, 6-3, by Anaheim Servite’s Jonathan Sanchez in his second match.

Ojai is Lederman’s second tournament since August, when he awoke the morning before the U.S. Tennis Assn. Super National Hard Court Championships in Kalamazoo, Mich., with numbness and a tingling sensation in his abdomen, legs and feet.

“It just came out of nowhere. I had no idea what was going on,” he said. “It felt like I had pins and needles all the way down my legs. It’s so weird. I had no balance, I couldn’t lift my legs. I had trouble getting out of a car.”

Tennis was out of the question for about six weeks, before the condition began to recede, as mysteriously as it had hit. Lederman, ranked No. 13 in the boys’ 16 division in Southern California, recovered enough to begin working out more regularly about a month ago. But he still has tingling on the tops of his feet and his stamina is not what it was.

Such an ongoing recovery is typical of Guillain-Barre if a patient makes it through the first month without the most severe symptoms, according Dr. Lance Alexander, Lederman’s doctor.

“I’m just afraid it’s not ever going to get completely better,” Lederman said. “It was really frustrating not to be able to get out there on the court. It’s just now gotten better to where I can do this.”

His mother, Ellie Lederman, is happy he can, but tennis is not her priority.

“I was a wreck when it first happened,” she said. “I was afraid to lose him. I was afraid if I went away, he was going to stop breathing. We’re really lucky.”

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USC senior Jewel Peterson, seeded No. 3 and looking for a second chance to win the Pacific 10 Conference women’s singles championship, was upset by Susi Wild of UCLA, 6-3, 1-6, 6-2, in the first round.

“She was really aggressive today and I just didn’t match that,” Peterson said.

Peterson, the Trojans’ No. 1 player, reached the title match last year, and had hoped for similar success this time.

“I’m definitely disappointed, I definitely wanted to play better,” she said.

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Jason Mossembekker of Camarillo High advanced to today’s round of 16 in the Boys’ CIF Interscholastic competition by defeating Mira Costa’s Ashton Politanoff, 6-3, 6-1, and El Dorado’s King Homneyom, 6-2, 6-1.

If he wins two more matches and reaches Saturday’s semifinals, he plans to be late to the church.

Jennifer Mossembekker, Jason’s first cousin, is getting married Saturday. Jason plans to play his matches that day if he advances and then hurry to the reception in Fullerton as soon as possible afterward.

“We already decided,” said Jason. “If I make it to Saturday, I definitely want to be here.”