Wharton No. 1 Konstantin Lazarov, No. 6 Rudy Lefebvre notch a win before falling in final.
By EMILY NIPPS
Published April 30, 2004
ALTAMONTE SPRINGS - With the help of one of Florida's best junior players, perhaps the most unbalanced doubles team of the tournament made a stab at a championship.
The Wharton doubles team of No. 1 player Konstantin Lazarov and No. 6 Rudy Lefebvre pulled off a come-from-behind semifinals victory against Melbourne Eau Gallie's Philip Blatchley and James Roesch on Thursday, winning 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4). They later lost to Tallahassee Leon's David Berry and Tyler Zorn 6-0, 6-4.
Lazarov, who made it to a doubles championship in 2002, lost his doubles partner (Wharton's No. 4) to illness just before the district tournament. Lefebvre steppedin, and they exceeded expectations by winning the semifinal in only their fourth match together.
"We're very compatible," Lazarov said. "Rudy's a very good player at the net, and with my big serve, he can take advantage."
"It's fun playing with him," Lefebvre said. "I miss a lot of shots, and he gets them."
Plant freshman Jeff D'Adamo lost his singles final 6-2, 6-0 to Sebastian River's Eddie Majcher, but will play in the doubles championship today with Javier Martinez.
D'Adamo and Martinez took awhile to warm up in their doubles semifinal, but pulled out a 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-4 win against Boca Raton's Daniel Green and Ben Zamani.
Martinez, a senior, has advanced to the state tournament in doubles four straight years, but has never won a final.
"This time, I feel like we can actually win it," said Martinez, who played with Eli Samaha before this season. "We have a lot more fun, so I'm more relaxed. Overall, I'm just really happy we made it to the finals my senior year."
Naples clinched the team championship Thursday, and Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas was runnerup. Hillsborough was fifth after three match victories Wednesday and Wharton sixth.
