City Section

Friday, Nov. 21

CITY SECTION PLAYOFFS

Finals

For the Granada Hills High girls’ tennis team, the proof was in the encore.

Senior Canna Furuta defeated Palisades freshman Olivia Colman, 6-1, 6-3, and the Highlanders won all three doubles matches en route to their second consecutive City Section championship.

The victory erased any doubts that No. 2-seeded Granada Hills (12-1) should have been seeded ahead of the No. 1 Dolphins (14-1).

“We didn’t know what to expect, but we were a little bit disappointed that we weren’t top-seeded,’’ Furuta said. “We’re defending champions, so we felt we should have been and we proved it.”

The Highlanders, making their sixth consecutive final appearance, won their fifth title. Their other championships came in 1982, ‘83, ’99 and 2002.

Although Furuta’s victory clinched the match, it was Granada Hills’ depth that did in the Dolphins, who were making their first appearance in a final since 1998 and were bidding for their 18th title overall.

Ramya Sreepathi and Nancy Ngo also posted singles victories and Granada Hills dominated in doubles. Alex Margolin and Roxanne Plata gave up just four games at No. doubles and the No. 3 team of Emily Yu and Kristine Mayor did the same.

The title smoothed a year of transition for the Highlanders, in their first season under 25-year-old Coach Simon Robertshaw after they had won two titles in nine years under former Coach Ron Wood. Wood was on hand as a spectator Friday.

“I think we’re pretty well-rounded,” Robertshaw said. “We’re really deep and hard to beat.”

The Highlanders proved that much.

In the City Invitational final, Shea Coleman and Comeo Pettway of Sylmar defeated Nelita Villedon and Anna Nowak to give the No. 6-seeded Spartans (8-6) their first title with a victory over top-seeded Westchester (6-7).
--Lauren Peterson

CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION

Granada Hills 6, Palisades 1
SINGLES: Canna Furuta (GH) d. Olivia Colman, 6-1, 6-3; Maria Cardenas (GH) lost to Krista Slocum, 7-6 (5), 6-2; Ramya Sreepathi (GH) d. Yasmir Navas, 6-2, 6-4; Nancy Ngo (GH) d. Lauren Pugatch, 0-6, 6-1, 6-3

DOUBLES: Alex Margolin-Roxanne Plata (GH) d. Cody Clark-Brittany O’Neil, 6-3, 6-1; Julia D’Yachenko-Jessica Linder (GH) d. Rebecca Feuerlicht-Lotte Kieppe, 6-1, 6-4; Emily Yu-Kristine Mayor (GH) d. Sarah Jurick-Tonika Farmer, 6-0, 6-4

Records: Granada Hills 12-1; Palisades 14-1

INVITATIONAL DIVISION

Sylmar 4, Westchester 3
SINGLES: Ann Araujo (S) lost to Simone Greene, 6-0, 6-0; Jessica Padilla (S) lost to Princess Manasseh, 6-1, 6-3; Fay Zulkifli (S) lost to Monika Brackett, 6-0, 6-0; Reyna Aragon (S) d. Dawn Stillwell, 6-7 (5), 6-0, 6-2

DOUBLES: Barbara Hernandez-Elizabeth Zamora (S) d. Jasmyne Fine-Anna Zelaya, 2-6, 6-3, 6-3; Shea Coleman-Comeo Pettway (S) d. Nelita Villezon-Anna Nowak, 2-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4; Nancy Lombera-Vernica Rascon (S) d. Brittany June-Hazel Araut, 6-4, 6-2

Records: Sylmar 8-6; Westchester 6-7

Wednesday, Nov. 19

CITY SECTION PLAYOFFS

Semifinals

CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION

Palisades 4, North Hollywood 3
Granada Hills 7, Carson 0
Top-seeded Palisades edged North Hollywood, 4-3, to advance to its first City Championship match since 1998 and No. 2-seeded Granada Hills routed Carson, 7-0, and will try for its second consecutive title when the teams meet in the City Section finals Friday at Balboa Sports Complex in Encino.

Palisades (14-0), which has won 16 City titles since 1978 and was a finalist for 21 consecutive seasons from 1978-1998, and has won 17 girls’ tennis championships overall, will be making its first appearance in a final since winning its last title, over Granada Hills in ’98. Granada Hills (11-1) will be making its sixth final-match appearance in a row and tenth overall. The Highlanders defeated Carson for last year’s title and will be attempting to win their fifth overall.

Senior Cody Clark and sophomore Brittany O’Neil of Carson defeated North Hollywood’s Eunice Yu and Christine Lee, 6-4, 6-2, in the decisive match at No. 1 doubles to lift Palisades into the final.

The Dolphins, who won the Marine League title, won all three doubles matches and got a victory at No. 4 singles by freshman Lauren Pugatch, who beat the Huskies’ Denise Ye, 6-1, 6-1.

North Hollywood (11-3), the Sunset Six League champion for the third year in a row, notched victories in singles by sophomore Desiree Stone, freshman Aexell Klincke and junior Marsha Clever.

West Valley League champion Granada Hills, which faced Carson in the past four championship matches, with each team winning twice by 4-3 scores, met up with the Colts a round earlier this time and dispatched them easily.

No. 1 player Canna Furuta, a senior, did not give up a game while beating Carson’s Cielo Domingo, 6-0, 6-0, to start the rout.

Junior Ramya Sreepathi, who defeated the Colts’ Chessie Sabac, 7-6 (0), 6-0, at No. 3 singles, and senior Nancy Ngo, who prevailed over Natherlie Winston, 6-0, 6-7 (5), 6-1, at No. 4 singles, finished off the victory.

The championship match between Palisades and Granada Hills is scheduled for 1 p.m. Friday. The City Invitational final match between top-seeded Westchester and Sylmar will go on concurrently.
--Lauren Peterson

Monday, Nov. 17

Sylmar 4, Narbonne 3
The No. 3 doubles team of Nancy Lombera and Veronica Rascon defeated Lydia Chong and Tiana Martin, 6-4, 6-7 (2), 6-4, to lift Sylmar (7-6) into the City Invitational final match for the first time with the victory at Balboa Sports Complex in Encino.

Westchester 4, Chatsworth 3
Jennifer Pan defeated Simone Greene, 6-0, 6-1, and Princess Manasseh defeated Annie Luong, 6-0, 6-0, to lead Westchester (6-6), which advances to the finals Friday at Balboa Sports Complex.