Girls tennis: Sea Kings stake claim to No. 1 billing

Richard Dunn

CORONA DEL MAR - By design, tennis is an individual sport, but

don’t say that to members of the Corona del Mar High girls tennis team.

The Sea Kings, the top-ranked team in Orange County and CIF Southern

Section Division IV, earned the No. 1 seed in the upcoming CdM National

High School All-American Invitational and, perhaps, the inside track to a

mythical national championship by USA Today.

After soundly defeating powerhouse Peninsula, 12-6, in a nonleague

match Thursday at CdM, Coach Andy Stewart’s Sea Kings can probably stake

claim to any No. 1 poll around.

“For right now, I think we’re the best team in the country,” Stewart

said. “I don’t know who’s in Florida, but I’d take my team against

anybody.”

Corona del Mar (3-0), which ended Peninsula’s 66-match winning streak

in CIF round-robin competition, won eight of nine singles sets, while two

doubles teams captured two of three sets, including the Sea Kings’ No. 3

doubles squad of senior Brittany Minna and sophomore Amanda Rubenstein.

Minna and Rubenstein upset the Panthers’ third doubles team of senior

Colby Comstock and junior Stephanie Stearns, 7-5, in the opening round,

giving the hosts a huge lift. With Comstock, ranked 27th nationally, the

team was considered Peninsula’s best in doubles.

“I knew it would be a tough match and we needed to play our best, but

that first round killed us,” said Peninsula Coach Tom Cox, whose team

(2-1), top-ranked in CIF Division I, fell behind in the first round, 5-1.

Peninsula, which once had a 120-match winning streak snapped by

Newport Harbor in September preleague action, has won the CIF Division I

title every year but one since the school’s inception in 1991.

“Our team is really good,” said sophomore Brittany Holland, who won

two of three at No. 3 singles, including a 7-5 victory over Shilpa Joshi,

Peninsula’s top player, in the first round to give the Sea Kings a

commanding 4-1 lead.

“We have a lot of good singles and doubles players, and everybody gets

along well, which is really important ... a sense of team unity is the

most important part in high school tennis. When I was down (5-4) in that

match with (Joshi), all of my teammates were cheering for me and that

help pump me up, so (teammates) really help when you’re down.”

With nationally ranked standouts Anne Yelsey and Brittany Reitz

sweeping their sets, CdM dominated in singles.

“With those two, it’s like starting a match 6-0,” Stewart said. “If

another team’s got a good (player), they can’t beat them and they’ll move

to doubles, like what Peninsula did with (Comstock).”

In the first round, in which the Sea Kings’ pair of 7-5 wins proved to

be monumental, Minna and Rubenstein fell behind, 4-1, then rallied for

the win.

“We started working as a team, and just winning key points,” said

Rubenstein. “It’s really nice when you work hard and get to see it pay

off.”

“We work great together,” Minna added.

At No. 1 doubles for the Sea Kings, senior Leslie Damion and junior

Taylynn Snyder won two of three sets, including the clincher for CdM in

the third round with a 6-3 win over Macall Harkins and Christina Jackson.

Katie Tenerelli and Juliette Mutzke competed at No. 2 doubles for the

Sea Kings, who lost to Peninsula last year, 15-3, and twice during the

1999 campaign, Stewart’s first as coach when he replaced Tim Mang.

NONLEAGUE

Corona del Mar 12, Peninsula 6

Singles - Yelsey (CdM) def. Weber, 6-0, def. Jurewitz, 6-3, def.

Joshi, 6-1; Reitz (CdM) won 6-0, 6-1, 6-2; Holland (CdM) won 6-0, lost

5-7, won 7-5.

Doubles - Snyder-Damion (CdM) def. LaBrucherie-Holt, 6-3, def.

Harkins-Jackson, 6-3, lost to Comstock-Stearns, 3-6; Tenerelli-Mutzke

(CdM) lost 4-6, 3-6, 2-6; Minna-Rubenstein (CdM) lost 1-6, won 6-3, 7-5.