Wojakowska, Creek triumph

Alan Pearce, Rocky Mountain News

Sunday, May 14, 2006

The two finalists at No. 1 singles for Class 5A were such newcomers to the state tournament scene that Palmer's Veronika Wojakowska had her name misspelled in the program and Ponderosa's Erin Sanders was introduced as being from Poudre.

Both made their names known at Gates Tennis Center this week. Wojakowska, in fact, will have her name in every future state program as a state champion.

The Terrors junior stamped out a 6-1, 7-5 win Saturday against the Ponderosa freshman. In her three previous tournament victories, Wojakowska showed off a ferocious forehand, but she was not swinging for the lines against Sanders.

"I was definitely going to try to keep the ball going more and not try for too much because I knew I'd be a little bit nervous, a little bit tense," Wojakowska said. "So, I just really tried to focus."

Wojakowska therefore didn't display much of the power she showed in a semifinal win Friday against pre-tournament favorite Christin Thompson of Lewis-Palmer.

But the keep-it-in-play strategy paid dual dividends, as Sanders was having trouble controlling her forehand and hit a lot of those shots long.

"My forehand wasn't great," Sanders said. "I felt I had no control over it up high; I'm a little better down low. I just wanted to get some topspin on it and it wasn't going my way today."

None of the first three games of the match were close, as the loser of each scored only one point. Trailing 2-1, Sanders was broken first, serving long twice for a double-fault at the critical point of 40-30. That game went to deuce four times before Wojakowska finally prevailed after Sanders hit a forehand long.

Sanders again had the advantage the next time she served, going up 40-love, but hit the ball out on the next three points. Wojakowska made her own error from the backhand side, but another then Sanders sent two backhands long to give up that game and, eventually, the set.

Sanders regrouped after going down 6-1 so quickly.

"After the first set, I told myself that this is not the time you want to play (this way) at state. This is not who you are," Sanders said. "I know I could have gone three sets and I commend her for closing out the second set."

Sanders was more aggressive and accurate in the second set, which caused problems for Wojakowska.

"I tried my best. I got control of my head and my strokes were getting more consistent," Sanders said.

The freshman played up her success on the second serve, sending some heavy slice to the Palmer star's backhand.

"She's a lefty and her spin is so crazy," Wojakowska said. "I don't play a lot of lefties and it took me a little while to get used to it."

Each player held serve the first time around, then each broke to keep the set even. Sanders fell behind 4-3 after double-faulting three times, but then drew went up 5-4. That was her last stand, though, and Wojakowska whipped a forehand down the line on double match point to become the first state champion in Palmer's tennis history.

Cherry Creek had locked up the team race before Saturday's rounds even began. That didn't stop the Bruins, though, who won every match they played and scored 86 points, more than double the total of runner-up Fort Collins.

Cherry Creek won six individual state championships from No. 2 singles all the way down to No. 4 doubles.

"That's as good as we can expect," Creek coach John Gibas said. "We're real pleased with the performance of all the girls. I thought they did great. Going seven-for-seven (in individual championships) is so tough. The boys have done it a couple times. We never have."

Doubles players Christina Macey (No. 1 with Stacey Berlinger) and Julie Swinehart (No. 3 with Delaney Downing) capped off marvelous careers with their fourth state titles. Only seven other players in history have won four state championships and this is the first year two players have pulled off such a rare feat.

"It hit me about five minutes before the match," Macey said. "I just needed to breathe deeply and slowly. It's hard to pick one (career highlight). I'm sad it's over, because it made my high school experience — all of it."

Swinehart had no panic attack before her championship try, but the prospect of No. 4 meant no less to her.

"I think it made me more nervous," she said. "It never left my mind — the whole tournament, the whole season."

All the other Bruins had reason to celebrate as well. Even sophomore Elizabeth Marsico contributed plenty to the Bruins point total.

Knocked out by Sanders in the quarterfinals, Marsico won out in the back draw. A state champion at No. 3 singles last season, Marsico won more points in playbacks than 23 teams scored at the state tournament. She finished third at No. 1 singles, beating Thompson.

The first Bruins champion was Rachel Loeb at No. 2 singles, who defeated Ponderosa's Morgan Forsyth 6-2, 6-2 for her third consecutive state title.

Undefeated this season, Loeb's worst set all year was a 6-3 win, against three different players. She beat Forsyth for the second time.

"The points were long and she definitely played better than in the (6-1, 6-2) dual match," Loeb said. "If she did give me a lob here and there, that's something I can handle. But, to her credit, she did it well."

Morganne Downing also credited Air Academy's Sindhya Shoptaugh as a credible opponent in their No. 3 singles match. Downing still won easily, though, 6-2, 6-1. It also was her third state title, but first in singles.

"We had really tight points in games, so it wasn't uneven at all," Downing said. "I tried to move her around and stay focused myself, not let my nerves get to me."

Berlinger and Macey won 6-4, 6-3 against the energetic Fort Collins duo of Hillary Kramer and Roxie Phillips.

"We were up 5-1 and then had little lapses, so they won three games," Macey said. "We toughed it out and I think both of us played really well."

A junior, Berlinger bagged state title No. 3, but was more worried about her teammate's quest.

"I knew in the back of mind it was her fourth and I didn't want to let her down or anything," she said.

Victoria Sargent and Brooke Shafner chalked up a 6-2, 7-5 win at No. 2 doubles over Ponderosa's Rachael Barr and Melissa Skovira.

"After we won the first set, we had to keep our momentum in the second, but it didn't start out too well," Sargent said. "After we realized we were down and still could catch up, it was time to take it to them."

Shafner whose sister Allie was a state champion at No. 2 singles in 2001, said her swan song was a sweet goodbye to tennis. A three-time state doubles champion, Shafner will join Allie at the University of Michigan.

Delaney Downing helped Swinehart to her fourth title while capturing her second herself. They beat the young Grand Junction team of Jenny Jessup and Audrey Keenan 6-3, 7-6 (4).

"We both felt kind of tight and the other team saw that," Downing said. "This is an amazing event and they just played really well throughout."

The toughest test facing any Cherry Creek doubles team came at No. 4. Stephanie Pepper and Caitlain Schnell passed it with a very tight 6-7 (13), 6-4, 6-3 win over Chatfield's talented pair of Anna Gleave and Kelley Pickens, the last match to be completed in the tournament.

"We just wanted to leave everything on the court," Pepper said. "We worked really hard to get here and it was a good experience."

Gleave and Pickens are tall players and intimidating at the net. They won a lot of points by not being afraid to poach.

"You're not intentionally hitting it right to them," Pepper said. "They're really good competitors and all you can do is get it back. We didn't give it to them. They worked for every point and are a really good team."

The match lasted so long that most of the crowd watched it finish, but support came from their teammates who had finished their matches.

"I think that's what really got us through that match," Schnell said. "It was really tough losing that tiebreaker and Chatfield had all their girls (watching) the whole time. But it really showed the Creek spirit how everyone came out and really cheered for us. I think the crowd got us through a lot of really tough points."

pearcea@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-892-5352

Class 5A girls tennis state tournament

Gates Tennis Center

Team scores

Cherry Creek 86, Fort Collins 42, Ponderosa 35, Chatfield 24, Grand Junction 23, Air Academy 22, Palmer 16, Poudre 7, Chaparral 5, Heritage 4, Denver East 3, Fairview 3, Arapahoe 2, Littleton 2, Boulder 1, Fruita Monument 1, George Washington 1, Grandview 1, Monarch 1, Columbine 0, Highlands Ranch 0, Loveland 0, Mitchell 0, Mountain Vista 0, Overland 0, Rampart 0, Rocky Mountain 0, Smoky Hill 0, ThunderRidge 0, Wheat Ridge 0.

Championship results

No. 1 singles — Veronika Wojakowska, Palmer, def. Erin Sanders, Ponderosa, 6-1, 7-5. No. 2 singles — Rachel Loeb, Cherry Creek, def. Morgan Forsyth, Ponderosa, 6-2, 6-2. No. 3 singles — Morganne Downing, Cherry Creek, def. Sindhya Shoptaugh, Air Academy, 6-2, 6-1. No. 1 doubles — Stacey Berlinger/Christina Macey, Cherry Creek, def. Hillary Kramer/Roxie Phillips, Ft. Collins, 6-4, 6-3. No. 2 doubles — Victoria Sargent/Brooke Shafner, Cherry Creek, def. Rachael Barr/Melissa Skovira, Ponderosa, 6-2, 7-5. No. 3 doubles — Delaney Downing/Julie Swinehart, Cherry Creek, def. Jenny Jessup/Audrey Keenan, Grand Junction, 6-3, 7-6 (4). No. 4 doubles — Stephanie Pepper/Caitlain Schnell, Cherry Creek, def. Anna Gleave/Kelley Pickens, Chatfield, 6-7 (13), 6-4, 6-3.

Third place

No. 1 singles — Elizabeth Marsico, Cherry Creek, def. Christin Thompson, Lewis-Palmer, 6-4, 6-2. No. 2 singles — Hillary Allen, Ft. Collins, def. Ashley Camenson, Poudre, 6-3, 6-2. No. 3 singles — Madeline Sprowell, Ft. Collins, def. Sam Hess, Lewis-Palmer, 2-6, 6-2, 7-5. No. 1 doubles — Cierra Hall/Emily Orbanek, Grand Junction, def. Suzanne Iwata/Stephanie Todd, Air Academy, 7-5, 6-2. No. 2 doubles — Ali Grush/Dani Lutes, Chatfield, def. Annie Olson/Nicole Petersen, Ft. Collins, 7-6 (3), 6-3. No. 3 doubles — Jssica Gasparian/Jenna Woodard, Ft. Collins, def. Jesse Apted/Sarah Layman, Chatfield, 1-6, 6-1, 7-6 (2). No. 4 doubles — Katie Aust/Emily Smith, Grand Junction, def. Melissa Karson/Katelyn Ortt, Chaparral, 7-5, 5-7, 6-1.