Following a quarterfinal appearance in 2024, then a fourth-place finish last year, Oak Park and River Forest High School senior Lucy Stein wanted to end her high school tennis career in style with an individual state championship.
After rattling off four consecutive victories in the IHSA Class 2A state tournament hosted by Buffalo Grove, Oct. 22-24, Stein seemed to be on track to attain her goal. But she lost a hard-fought semifinal match and went on to finish third.
Despite the final outcome, Stein felt she gave it her best shot.
“I’m happy with my result,” she told Wednesday Journal. “I’m happy that each year at state, I got better with my place. I had a tough match in the semifinals, but I was happy to be able to bounce back on Saturday and win my last match.”
Stein, who entered the state finals seeded third, won three matches on Thursday: 6-2, 6-0 over Elena Grmusa of East Aurora; 6-1, 6-2 over Lily David of Downers Grove South; and 6-0, 6-0 over Danielle Dejanovich of St. Charles North.
On Friday, Stein blanked Kylie Blass of Stevenson 6-0, 6-0, but lost to Julia Ludwig of New Trier 6-1, 2-6, and 5-7.
“She had a really ugly ending in the semifinal; that’s the way it goes sometimes,” said OPRF coach Fred Galluzzo. “But she bounced back Saturday in good spirits.”
That was evident as Stein rolled past Yuki Dogadalski of Libertyville 6-1, 6-1 to clinch third place. In the team standings, OPRF tied for ninth with Maine South, each finishing with 15 points.
“I just told myself on Saturday that it was a new day and I was going to put the semifinal match in the past,” said Stein, who finished with a season record of 34-2. “Nothing was going to change the fact that I lost, and I wanted to win (third place).”
Stein qualified for the state tournament in all four years of her OPRF career. Now that it is over, she looks back on her time in the Huskies’ program with gratitude and appreciation.
“I had a really good career,” Stein said. “I had a lot of fun with OPRF tennis, and I’m happy with how it ended up.”
Stein added that she’ll miss the camaraderie she felt with her teammates and coaches, along with the experiences shared on and off the court.
“I’ll miss being able to represent (OPRF) in tennis, and I’ll miss my teammates,” she said. “I’ve made so many friends from this program.”
Galluzzo said he’ll miss the leadership Stein provided the last two years. He adds it will be weird not having her around next year.
“Lucy was the leader of our team. Everyone looked up to her,” he said. “She’s been a stalwart for four years and I’ve loved watching her play. She’s a fighter, she’s a competitor, and she’s a tough kid.”
As Stein prepares for a college career, freshman Zoe Glennie represents OPRF’s future. She qualified for the state tournament and defeated Calla Graham of Moline (6-1, 6-2) in her opening match.
After losing 0-6, 1-6 to Dogadalski in the second round, Glennie won her first match in the consolation bracket 7-6, 4-6, 10-1 over Makaeylynn Waller-Li of Naperville North. But she was eliminated in the next round 1-6, 0-6 by Hinsdale Central’s Myra Shaikh.
“I was really proud of Zoe for making the state tournament,” Stein said. “I knew that was a goal she had. She has it in her to have good results the next three years. She’s a really good player and I wish her the best in the future.”
OPRF’s top doubles pairing of senior Ava Lebovitz and junior Ella Rangsithienchai also competed. The duo lost its first-round match, 1-6, 2-6, to Kelsey Clousing and Priya Rozanski of Wheaton-Warrenville South, but won the consolation bracket opener 6-1, 6-2 over McKenna Fernstrom and Solveig Nelson of Dundee-Crown before being eliminated 4-6, 6-7 by Fremd’s Stella Lee and Siya Mistry.
“They had a nice tournament, they played well,” Galluzzo said. “Ella’s coming back, and this will be a good experience for her.”
Fenwick
Like Lebovitz and Rangsithienchai, Fenwick seniors Lucy Gruber and Emma Louderback competed in doubles and went 1-2. The duo lost in the first round 1-6, 1-6 to Stevenson’s Emma Iwanowski and Klaudia Jaworski, but bounced back to win their first consolation match 6-3, 6-1 over Juliet and Lydia Michalesko.
Gruber and Louderback were eliminated in the next match by Nidhi Karekar and Ella Kestner 1-6, 2-6.