Hasegawa dispatches familiar foes

Wesley Chapel star defeats a former training partner and longtime rival to reach finals.

By DAVID MURPHY
Published April 27, 2006

BROOKSVILLE - On most any evening, Wharton coach Darren Glover can stick his head out of his door and hear the squeak of sneakers and the thumping of tennis balls ringing in the night.

That's because he lives on the same street as Yumi Hasegawa, whose backyard features a couple of tennis courts and whose dedication to the game has stretched across America and overseas.

"I always hear it," Glover said of the Wesley Chapel player, "every night."

So despite the fact Hasegawa had not defeated Wharton star Brooke Allen in a few years, it was hardly a shocker she pulled it off in the semifinals of the state singles championship Wednesday.

Hasegawa, who missed last year's tournament while training in Japan, topped her longtime nemesis 7-5, 6-3 to advance to today's final against Lakeland George Jenkins' Monica Arguello.

Though Allen played her tough in the first set, it was easy to see the match would inevitably tilt in the Wesley Chapel star's favor. Every part of her game seemed to be on, an observation Hasegawa confirmed afterward.

"I thought I played really well," Hasegawa said. "Mentally, I did really well."

Hasegawa was very familiar with her opponents Wednesday. She defeated Nina Alimpic, whom she once trained with at Saddlebrook, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 in her first match. And she has known Allen since she was 12.

"Back in the day I used to beat her, but I've lost to her the previous few times," said Hasegawa, who last faced the Wharton star last summer in a tournament. "I freaked out when I saw the draw."

Hasegawa also is familiar with Arguello, whom she will have to defeat today if she wants to advance to Friday's overall singles championship. She has never beaten the Jenkins star, who is ranked No. 6 in the state in the U.S. Tennis Association's 18-year-old singles rankings.

"Yumi's going to be ready for her," Wesley Chapel coach Jim Caracchiolo said.

Central's boys team left Day 1 without winning a match and has no singles players or doubles teams left in the tournament. Central's girls doubles team of Jeanette McDonald and Irene Cho also lost their only match.

[Last modified April 27, 2006, 02:56:30]