Butterwick, Ochwat win title

Mike Sciacca

Sophomores Lorren Butterwick and Katie Ochwat stepped to the head of

the Pacific Coast League doubles class Monday by winning the Pacific

Coast League doubles championship.

No matter the outcome of that title match played at the Racquet

Club of Irvine, the doubles crown ultimately would rest with Laguna.

It was an all-Laguna final but Butterwick and Ochwat prevailed

against teammates Jackie Reed and Kellie Ammerman, 6-2, 6-4.

In the PCL singles final, defending champion Claire Rietsch

finished runner-up to Brittany Holland as her Corona del Mar opponent

scored a 6-2, 6-2 win in the final.

Both Laguna doubles teams, as well as Rietsch, qualified for the

upcoming doubles and singles CIF Southern Section tournaments.

“That is a very big accomplishment to qualify two doubles teams

and a singles player,” Laguna coach Brian Ricker said. “It’s

definitely one of the highlights of the year for our team.”

Ricker said that Reed and Ammerman “cruised” into the finals with

convincing victories over two Corona del Mar teams.

In quarterfinal round action, they defeated the Sea Kings’ Jaime

Steele and Jackie Manning by 6-1, 6-4 scores. In semifinal play, they

advanced by eliminating sisters Haley and Miranda Young, 6-1, 6-1.

Butterwick and Ochwat had a tougher time advancing to the final,

Ricker said.

The duo barely escaped with a victory in quarterfinal play but in

the semifinals, came on strong to upset the No. 1 seed of Corona del

Mar’s Jill Braverman and Juliet Mutzke, 6-3, 6-3.

In singles play, Rietsch scored a 6-1, 6-1 semifinal win over

University’s Marissa Lin, to earn a rubber match against Holland.

On two occasions during the regular season, the PCL’s top two

singles players met. Rietsch won the first meeting, 6-0, 7-5, but

Holland came back in the second half of league play to turn the

tables and emerge with a 6-2, 6-2 victory.

In the league singles final, Rietsch battled a cold but Holland

was impressive in playing a near-perfect match.

Laguna, which tied Corona del Mar for the PCL team championship,

began CIF Division I playoff action Thursday.

The CIF Individual and Doubles tournaments will begin Dec. 22.