Mt. Lebanon wins 15th WPIAL girls tennis team title, North Catholic earns 1st

By: Ted Sarneso
Thursday, October 17, 2024 | 12:01 AM

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For the second time in three years, the Class 3A WPIAL girls tennis team championship came down to the match involving Mt. Lebanon junior Michelle Yang.

Just like 2022, Yang came through, although in different circumstances, to give the top-seeded Blue Devils a 3-2 win over defending champion and No. 3 seed Bethel Park at the Janet Swanson Tennis Center on the campus of Washington & Jefferson.

“Two years ago, I was in first doubles,” Yang said. “So I would say I’m used to the pressure somewhat. I wasn’t nervous today because I think I got all the nerves out in WPIAL doubles.”

Yang defeated Black Hawk sophomore Mckenzie Smock, 6-2, 7-5, in what was a tough battle. For Yang, it was a familiar feeling as the courts at the Janet Swanson Center aren’t her favorites.

“Every court feels different and these courts here always feel small to me,” Yang elaborated. “When I’m here, I’m going to hit the ball out and a lot of my misses today were out. I didn’t miss very much at the net.”

“With that in the back of my head, I was a little tense coming into this match knowing I don’t always feel comfortable on these courts,” added Yang. “But I could tell that some of my shots were frustrating her and I built upon that.”

Blue Devils coach Chad Brown had all the confidence Yang would prevail in the end

“This is where it’s nice when girls train together and they know each other,” Brown said. “It’s nice when I can give them feedback, but it’s even better when they tell me they know the opponent’s strengths and weaknesses. Michelle was able to communicate with me and she knew what she needed to do and I was just there to support her.”

The win ties Mt. Lebanon with Upper St. clair for the most team championships in Class 3A with 15.

“Funny story, I was talking to the girls before we headed down here,” Brown recounted. “The banner in the gym had one spot left before we needed a new one. It’s real nice to win two in three years, but now we look to overtake Upper St. Clair on that leaderboard.”

Yang’s win came on the heels of Mt. Lebanon’s doubles pairings sweeping their matches.

The first win of the day went to the Blue Devils second doubles pair of junior Alejandra Garcia and sophomore Maggie Meehan, who won 6-0, 6-4 over Black Hawks senior Sarah Wolf and junior Amelia Lancet.

Then, in first doubles, senior Sylvie Erikson and junior Sarah Stroh bested Bethel Park’s duo of sophomore Cassie Sierka and junior Kiera Ross 7-5, 6-1.

“We won both doubles, just like we did two years ago,” said Brown. “When you do that, it’s really hard to lose, unless you’re that strong in singles, but it’s real hard to win all three singles because they can go either way.”

Brown’s analysis proved correct as Bethel Park was able to take No. 1 and No. 3 singles.

Black Hawks sophomore Cami Fisher defeated Mt. Lebanon’s Jackie Tang, 6-2, 6-2, and senior Julia Gobbie was able to put away Elena Tatel in a match that went three sets.

Gobbie won the first set 6-4 and Tatel rallied in the second set to claim a 6-2 victory. In a third set that seemed destined for a tiebreak the way both girls were playing, Gobbie was triumphant in a 6-4 decision.

“We lost to them earlier in the year 3-2 and it was just as close, with the difference being only a couple points, and you can’t ask more than that,” said Bethel Park coach Doug Addington. “They gave a good effort and even the last set, Julia fought to the end.”

With the loss of a lot of talent from last year’s team, Addington pointed to the team’s victory in the semifinal match against Shady Side Academy as the high point of the season.

“That was our Super Bowl,” Addington said. “Especially with Fisher taking down their No. 1 player Meriwether McCargo, beating a girl that was the WPIAL singles champion two years in a row.”

For Addington, the future is bright and he knows his team will be back in contention again next year.

“The base of my team next year is my top three players, who are only going to be juniors, so we have two more years with them,” said Addington. “I’m looking forward to coming back next year at the scene of the crime.”

Long 3rd set decides 2A

If the deciding match in the Class 3A contest was a tough competition, the clinching match between North Catholic’s Evelyn Marche and Quaker Valley’s Jay Olawaiye in third singles in Class 2A was endurance-testing battle.

Neither player wanted to concede the winning point in a match that went three sets.

In the end, Marche won 5-7, 7-5, 6-0 to give the match to the top-seeded Trojans 3-2. The win is the first WPIAL Class 2A girls tennis title for North Catholic.

“It means so much because I’m a freshman as well,” said Marche. “I’m so happy I was able to get the opportunity to get the win for my team. I’m so excited right now.”

Marche was excited to get the win, but as the match started, she was anxious.

“I was so nervous, When I was down match point in the second set, I was trying to brush off the nerves and focus,” Marche said.

It was at that point that Marche locked in. She didn’t lose another game after taking a 6-5 lead in the second set.

“I was trying to restart, told myself it’s a new start, refocus and win this set to get to the third set,” said Marche.

Earlier in the Class 2A finals, No. 2 seed Quaker Valley took the other singles matches as senior Kristen Close beat sophomore Brea Kelley, 6-1, 6-1, and freshman Avery Allan defeated Trojan freshman Delaney Kelley, 6-1, 6-4.

North Catholic secured victories in both doubles matches. Seniors Kate Hardy and Jessica Sinclair won 6-1, 7-5 over juniors Livia Jobbins and Jane Lenhard in first doubles. Sophomore Samantha Falcon and freshman Marcaria Stall beat Parker Barnes and Hannah Stein, 6-1, 6-4, in second doubles.

The top three finishers in each classification advance to the PIAA girls tennis championships with the first round beginning Tuesday.

In Class 3A, Shady Side Academy defeated Fox Chapel, 5-0, in the third-place match. In Class 2A, Hampton got past Oakland Catholic, 3-2.

Tags: Bethel Park, Mt. lebanon, North Catholic, Quaker Valley