And then there were three

Bryce Alderton

In the first game of the second set between second-seeded Kaes

Van’t Hof and Robert Khoury in boys 18s singles, Van’t Hof blasted a

serve that hit the net so hard, a “crackle” reverberated throughout

the otherwise serene atmosphere Thursday afternoon at the Balboa Bay

Club Racquet Club.

The crackling net was just one example of the hard-hitting between

the two semifinalists, both from Newport Beach, who dueled in the War

by the Shore Junior Tennis Classic.

Van’t Hof, who turns 16 Thursday and will be a junior at Mater Dei

High in the fall, blasted his way through incoming Newport Harbor

freshman Khoury, 6-4, 6-1. The win sets up Van’t Hof for a duel in

the finals with Encinitas’ Kyle McDonald, who upset top-seeded Shan

Sondhu, 4-6, 6-0, 7-6.

Khoury mentioned after the match that Van’t Hof caught him off

guard with a tricky kick serve that Van’t Hof said he’s been

practicing recently.

“I’ve been trying to get better (at the kick serve) over the

years,” Van’t Hof said. “Now it’s starting to kick a little more.”

Van’t Hof, who said his serve has been clocked at 120 mph, hit two consecutive aces to go up, 5-4, in the first set and didn’t lose a

point the rest of the set, breaking Khoury’s serve with a powerful

forehand return just inside the sideline to Khoury’s right to take

the first set.

After two deuce points, Van’t Hof broke Khoury’s serve in the

second set to go up 5-1 and he finished out the match on serve.

“I’ve got to give him credit -- he was just playing better than

me,” Khoury said. “That kick serve just kicked over my head. It just

wasn’ t my day. I was glad to get this far, I just wanted to play.”

It was Newport Beach’s Alexa Glatch’s day, as she downed

fourth-seeded Casey Knutson, 6-4, 6-1, to set up a finals match today

at 12:30 p.m. against Lauren Jones, who beat Corona del Mar

senior-to-be Taylynn Snyder, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4, in the other girls 18s

singles semifinal Thursday.

But Snyder and Knutson made their way to the girls 18s doubles

finals today at 2 p.m. as the top seeds as they defeated Carmen and

Diana Khoury, 6-1, 6-4.

Both Amanda Rubenstein, the No. 3 seed in girls 16s singles and

Corona del Mar High junior this fall, and top-seeded Lorren

Butterwick of Laguna Beach, dueled in a three-set grudge match won by

Butterwick, 3-6, 6-0, 6-3.

Rubenstein chased down countless balls along the baseline and had

many exchanges with Butterwick that at times lasted more than two

dozen returns.

“I couldn’t ask for more,” said a smiling Rubenstein after the

match as she cooled off with a drink of water. “I tried my best and

had a good time.”

Rubenstein had a sprained wrist that she said hampered her

backhand.

“She played my backhand well once she picked up on that,”

Rubenstein said.

In girls 16s doubles, the top-seeded team of Jamison Steele and

Sarah Farmer will play in the finals today at 3:30 p.m.

Second-seeded Costa Mesa resident Nelly Radeva also reached the

finals in her division, girls 14s singles, with two victories

Thursday, the second coming against third-seeded Micaela Hein, 7-6,

6-1.

Radeva will play top-seeded Kendra Ivey from Monarch Beach today

at 9:30 a.m. Ivey beat Newport Beach’s Jillian Braverman, 6-2, 6-1,

after Braverman had won her earlier match Thursday over fourth-seeded

Brooke Fletcher, 1-6, 6-3, 6-1.

Braverman and Claire Rietsch, the No. 2 seeded duo in girls 14s

doubles, advanced to the finals today at 2 p.m. with a 6-3, 6-4 win

over Brooke Fletcher and Olivia Coleman, both of Laguna Niguel.

In boys 14s singles, Ryan Caughren lost to third-seeded Michael

Eraso, 6-4, 6-2, in semifinal action Thursday and No. 3 seed Raymond

Sarmiento beat second-seeded Costa Mesa resident Charlie Alvarado,

6-4, 6-1, Thursday in boys 12s singles.

Costa Mesa’s Chase Corum dropped his semifinal match Thursday to

Mikey Zablan, 6-2, 6-3, in boys 10s singles and Newport Beach’s

Melissa Matsuoka lost her semifinal match in girls 10s to top-seeded

Tiffany Tran, 5-7, 6-2, 6-3.