First article this season

Geneva doubles up
Vikings claim both singles and doubles titles to win St. Charles East sectional
By Adam Bartolo
Daily Herald Writer
Posted Sunday, October 15, 2006

After Friday’s play at the St. Charles East sectional, it was known that only three teams would be sending players to the state tournament.

St. Charles North placed four semifinalists in four different matches while Geneva and St Charles East each had two.

The Vikings and Saints won all four semifinals and Geneva won both finals, giving the Vikings took the sectional title 28 points to St. Charles North’s 26. The Saints finished third with 22 while Glenbard North and DeKalb had 8.

The highlight of Saturday’s action was the doubles championship match between Geneva’s undefeated combo of Jenny Yonuks and Blair Selakovich against St. Charles East’s Abby Winter and Amanda Gomez.

The first set went to a tiebreaker. The Saints had 2 set points but their execution struggled and they could not close it out.

Trailing 7-6, Yonkus and Selakovich rallied for 3 straight points for a pivotal 7-6 (9-7) first set win. Both teams later acknowledged those three points as the turning point of the match.

If Winter and Gomez were upset about the tiebreaker, they didn’t let it show in the second set as they took the first two games. But Geneva got the match to 5-5, held serve for a 6-5 advantage, and broke the Saints’ serve for a 7-5 set win and the match.

The teams acknowledged while neither played their best match in the finals, the battle got them more ready for state.

“We’re going to be so much more intense,” said Selakovich, who along with Yonkus is 30-0 this season. “We’ll play a lot better. I can promise that.”

Geneva coach Maureen Weiler expected her team to win the match, but admired the play of Winter and Gomez.

“I thought St. Charles played a fantastic match,” Weiler said. “It was good for Jen and Blair to be pushed that hard and play under that type of pressure.”

Winter and Gomez had a crazy tournament that included surviving a match point in their second round match against West Chicago and a three-set win over the North Stars’ Andrea Gentile and Lauren Drawbridge.

“State has been our goal for two years and this match gave us a huge boost of confidence going in,” said Winter.

In the third place match, Denise Lovorn and Lauren Dutkiewicz topped fellow North Stars Gentile and Drawbridge 4-6, 6-4, 6-0. But Gentile and Drawbridge had a great run as they upset the third seed, Geneva’s Meredith Bettcher and Liz Bertrand, 6-1, 6-0 in the quarterfinals.

On the singles side, Geneva freshman phenom Kayla Fujimoto ran through the field that ended with a 6-1, 6-1 win over St. Charles East’s Stefanie Youngberg in the finals. Fujimoto got a battle from St. Charles North’s Annemijn Koenen in the semifinal before Fujimoto prevailed 6-3, 6-2.
As she’s playing more, Fujimoto’s play is growing more and more confident.

“I just play my game really aggressive and it worked for me,” said Fujimoto.

Saints coach Sena Drawer said her squad proved themselves against a tough field.

“Stefanie and the doubles team are peaking at the right time,” Drawer said. “I’m very happy for all the girls.”

In the other all-North Star third place match, Koenen was awarded third place against Megan Gow, who had to pull out in the second set after straining her right bicep. She and the rest of her team decided it would be best to make sure she would be ready for state.

St. Charles North is thrilled to qualify six girls for state, the maximum number possible. Coach Tim Matacio came away very satisfied.

“This is not an easy sectional so we’re anything but disappointed,” Matacio said. “We’re very excited and we’re looking forward to state.”