Neuqua Valley hosting the 2A girls tennis sectional on a cloudy and cool Monday afternoon after a rainy weekend pushed the semi-finals and finals back a couple of days. The Wildcats look to add a sectional title to the trophy case a week after winning the DVC with Metea Valley, Waubonsie Valley, Plainfield North, and Oswego among the other contenders. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.
Jessica Kovalcik dominates the singles bracket
The host Wildcats have senior Kendall Klimek in the singles third-place match against Sangita Siva from Metea Valley. Klimek qualified for state a season ago while Siva punched her first-ever state ticket with a win over Isha Srinivasan from Waubonsie Valley in the quarterfinals. Klimek takes the opening set 6-2.
In the second set, Siva with a great cross-court forehand that Klimek can not keep in play to give the point to the Mustang.
Klimek serves later in the second set and the senior works hard for this point, moving around the court and keeping her opponent near the back. Siva finds the net and Klimek takes the win 6-2, 6-1 to earn the third-place medal.
In the first-place match, sophomore Savannah Millard from Oswego takes on defending sectional champion Jessica Kovalcik from Plainfield North. Kovalcik with the serve in the near court and we see a battle with each player giving their all. Kovalcik tries to drop a soft backhand near the line, but Millard gets to it and fires a return past her for the point.
But Kovalcik was flat-out dominant throughout the entire sectional. The junior obliterates everyone, not dropping a single game throughout the tournament. Kovalcik is the singles sectional champion for a third year in a row going 6-0 throughout.
Neuqua Valley impresses in the doubles division
In the doubles third-place match Waubonsie Valley has a state qualifying duo in junior Sofia Parranto and freshman Chloe Cochran making the final four against first-time qualifiers Sophia Cahue and Sarina Saleem from Metea Valley. The Mustangs are in the near court looking to close out the first set. All four players approach the net until Saleem pops a return over the heads of the Warriors for the point to take the set 6-2.
In the second set, Cochran serves in the far court and shares a couple of volleys with Cahue. Parranto playing near the net powers a backhand home for the point.
Waubonsie continues to serve later in the set as things have tightened up. Some long volleys between Cochran and Cahue go back and forth near the back lines. Saleem goes for the smash but Parranto gets a racquet on the ball and it pops over for the point. The Warriors lead 6-5 and the second set eventually heads to a tiebreaker.
Cahue serves for the Mustangs looking to prevent a third set. Saleem is able to complete the smash this time as the Metea duo takes it 6-2, 7-6 for third place. Three Mustangs heading to state this fall after being shut out a season ago.
The championship match is an all-Wildcat final with the three seed, Madalyn Finke and Zara Khan against the top seed Sophia Chiou and Kylie Tran. Only Chiou has qualified for state before, and that was as a singles player last season. Early in the opening set, Finke with a nice shot on the line for the point as the Wildcats surprise their teammates by taking an early game.
However, as they have all season long, Chiou and Tran take control as the match goes along. A great backhanded return from Tran drops in for the point as the top Wildcats duo takes the first set 6-1.
More of the same in set two. Zara Khan with a couple of tough returns, but Chiou slams the ball down to earn the point as Kylie Tran and Sophia Chiou are the doubles sectional champions. Neuqua Valley wins the sectional title for a sixth consecutive season. Waubonsie Valley finishes in second place with Metea Valley in third.
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