Last year, Oak Park and River Forest High School junior Lucy Stein reached the quarterfinals of the IHSA Class 2A girls tennis singles state tournament. Based on her performance so far, she has the appearance of a serious contender for this year’s championship.
At the Class 2A OPRF Sectional on Saturday, Stein won her second consecutive sectional title, defeating Jia Champlin of Lincoln Park 6-2, 6-0.
“She was a really good player,” Stein said of Champlin. “But I was able to play consistent and win the points.”
The rainy weather this weekend impacted the schedule of the sectional. First-round, second-round, and semifinal matches were played outdoors on Friday, and the championship matches took place indoors at the Oak Park Tennis and Fitness Centre.
Stein, now 30-2 this season, admitted she needed to make an adjustment going inside.
“I definitely think that the indoor game is different from the outdoor game,” she said. “I felt good playing inside. It was still hard for me and my opponent, so I had to stay mentally strong.”
“Lucy’s been sparkling this year,” said OPRF coach Fred Galluzzo. “She’s lost to one player (CJ Coan of York) twice this year. Lucy is one of the real strong contenders for the state title.”
Stein, the sectional’s top seed, had a first-round bye. She defeated Rose Brady of DePaul Prep 6-1, 6-0 in the second round; Katie McCarthy of Fenwick 6-0, 6-0 in the quarterfinals; and Kate Gibble of St. Ignatius 6-1, 5-7, 6-0 in the semifinals.
Stein’s victory over Champlin was a major factor in the team standings. OPRF and St. Ignatius tied for first with 21 points each, and the Huskies won the title based on the second tiebreaker: number of sectional champions.
“We had a champion and [St. Ignatius] didn’t,” Galluzzo said. “It’s remarkable. Honestly, it was a big shock to me.”
Senior Clara Lau and junior Ava Lebovitz qualified for the doubles state tournament thanks to their third-place finish. The duo blanked Sophia Flasck and Kaya Lamarre of Jones Prep 6-0, 6-0 in the first round, then defeated Tess Taylor and Clare O’Rourke of DePaul 6-1, 6-2 in the second round.
Lau and Lebovitz lost the semifinal to eventual sectional champions Imade Osaghae and Harper Wright of Whitney Young 3-6, 3-6, but rebounded to defeat Kate and Keira Lloyd of DePaul 6-4, 6-1 to take third place.
“They’ve been together since the first week of September,” Galluzzo said. “[Lau and Lebovitz] took a little time trying to figure out each other’s game, but they’re really playing well together as they’ve grown into a team.”
Sophomore Ella Rangsithienchai and seniors Tess Cronin and Zoe Panton also competed for OPRF. Following a bye, Rangsithienchai lost her second-round singles match to Emma Louderback of Fenwick 1-6, 1-6. Cronin and Panton won their second-round doubles match 6-4, 6-1 over Lea Kostic and Aderin Oshuntugi of Whitney Young before losing to Catherine Grace Smith and Sophie Espaldon in the quarterfinals 4-6, 6-3, 5-7.
The state tournament, hosted by Hersey, takes place Oct. 23-25. OPRF is entering on a confident note.
“Ava and Clara are in position to get something done this tournament,” Galluzzo said. “They’re not going to get seeded of course, but if they get a first-round draw that works for them, once they get into the second round, they’ll play with confidence and hopefully get on a roll in the back draw.”
“I’m feeling good,” Stein said. “I’d definitely like to play more aggressive at state, but I feel I’ve played really well this season and had a lot of good wins.”
Fenwick
The Friars finished sixth at OPRF with eight points and did not qualify any players for the state tournament.
McCarthy, a senior, defeated Olivia Dorfman of Jones 6-1, 6-3 in the second round before falling to Stein in the quarterfinals. Following her second-round win over Rangsithienchai, Louderback, a junior, lost in the quarterfinals to Leena Manadan of Whitney Young 1-6, 3-6.
In doubles, juniors Coco Braithwaite and Lucy Gruber lost their opener 2-6, 1-6 to Smith and Espaldon. Seniors Maddie Cheronis and Sydney Woitel also lost their first match, 3-6, 0-6, to Osaghae and Wright.