Patriots pull away from AHN

By TERRY JONES
Published April 20, 2005

TAMPA - The Freedom and Academy of the Holy Names girls were even with 10 points each after the first day of district competition, but the Patriots dominated Tuesday to win with 20 points.

AHN was second with 12, followed by St. Petersburg Catholic and Lakewood with five each. Jesuit won the boys title with 17 points, followed by Freedom (14) and St. Petersburg Catholic (six).

"Not all our girls won, but since they all did their best, the team won," Freedom girls coach Eleanor Canencia said.

The Patriots' individual champs were No. 1 Laura Gioia, a 6-0, 6-1 winner over AHN's Christine Pytlinski; No. 2 Paige Kensrue, a 6-2, 6-1 winner over AHN's Allison Symelevich; and No. 3 Caitlin McKenna, a 6-0, 6-0 win over AHN's Liz Jennewein.

Academy's Kim Renspie finished her freshman season 11-0 with a district championship at No. 4. She defeated Freedom's Kellen Beegle 6-3, 6-4 for the title.

Freedom also won both doubles titles. Gioia and Kensrue beat Academy's Pytlinski and Symelevich 6-1, 6-1 at No. 1, and Hastings and McKenna topped Jennewein and Renspie 6-1, 6-1 at No. 2.

For the boys, Jesuit won all five singles titles: No. 1 Mark Wilkie beat St. Petersburg Catholic's Nick Smith 6-3, 6-1; No. 2 Brian Beasley beat Freedom's Michael Bedosky 7-6, 6-0; No. 3 Eddy Shahnasanan beat Freedom's Jordan Snyder 6-1, 6-2; No. 4 Matt Jordan defeated Freedom's Mitch Rosen 6-0, 6-4; and No. 5 Conner Blouin beat Freedom's Andy Schurr 6-0, 6-4.

CLEARWATER - After a 10-hour day of tennis that spurned Pinellas County teams, the tennis-intensive big-three (Saddlebrook, Tampa Prep and Berkeley Prep) held the top spots at the Royal Racquet Club, but left room for more action today.

Saddlebrook took the boys team title with 17 points, winning the bottom four seeds. Tampa Prep's George Navas, ranked 14th in the nation in Junior USTA and third in the state, won at No. 1 and helped Tampa Prep finish second with 12 points.

The girls division was left with unfinished business. Trailing Saddlebrook by just one team point, with only the No. 1 doubles match to go, Tampa Prep's Andrea Meythaler and Kelly Palmer rallied from 2-5 in the first set to win 7-5, 6-2, tying the teams at 17 points for the championship. According to FHSAA rules, the teams will play a dual match in an eight-game pro-set. As of press time, the time and location had not been set.

Five weeks since she last picked up a racquet and three weeks since having an appendectomy, Meythaler fell just short of winning the whole thing for Tampa Prep, falling 6-7 (6-8), 6-3, 6-4 to Saddlebrook No. 1 Yui Shimizu.

Saddlebrook's Kourtney Stark won at No. 2, but Tampa Prep's Victoria Kostina, Mary Ingram and Brittney Pierpont all won the bottom four seeds.

"They used to blast us," Tampa Prep coach Mark Hoerstra said. "This is the first year we've won a singles point off them in the season. We are getting close or at least just closer."

- ERIC MUSKATEVC, Times correspondent

[Last modified April 20, 2005, 02:56:36]