Sailors past and present battle in tennis war

NEWPORT BEACH ? The tennis court was slightly larger for Sasha Dunlap and Jill Casserly Tuesday.

When the former Newport Harbor High teammates got together for a War by the Shore tournament match, line scrutiny was nowhere to be seen. If the ball was close to being in Dunlap and Casserly would play it without uttering a word or raising a finger to signal the ball did not land inside the line.

The generosity in judging led to quick play, which Casserly dominated in taking the girls’ 18 singles round of 32 match, 6-1, 6-2, to advance to the round of 16 in the 17th Annual Balboa Bay Club Racquet Club Junior Tournament.

“[Dunlap] was very kind and very honest and easy going,” Casserly said. “I was really impressed. She’s always been nice. I love playing against her. She was very generous.”

The match symbolized a crossroads of sorts. Casserly, after graduating from Newport Harbor this year, is moving on to play tennis at Wheaton College in Illinois.

With Casserly leaving, a singles spot has opened on the team, for which Dunlap, a doubles player, is likely to compete.

“She’s a fine player,” Casserly said.

Casserly, who was playing in her first tournament of the summer because she was focused on graduating, said the match boosted her confidence for playing tennis in college.

“There is a difference between junior players and college players,” Casserly said. “A junior player is a baseline player who expects a deep ball and reacts to the short ball. A college player expects the short ball and reacts to the deep ball. I stayed aggressive today and played confident.”

Casserly consistently finished off long rallies in the match with powerful winners and set up other easy points with her serve.

“I think she had a lot of difficulty with my serve,” Casserly said. “When I’m consistent with my serve everything else falls into place. I felt like I controlled the match.”

After winning her round of 64 match, 6-3, 3-6, 7-5, and participating in clinics in the morning and evening on Monday, Newport Beach resident Lexy Longman was prepared for the worst. It never came.

Longman breezed through her girls’ 16 singles match to advance to the round of 16 with a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Newport Coast resident Nandi Shah.

“I thought when my serves were in, I did well and my forehand was hard and it had a lot of top spin,” Longman said. “Yesterday’s match was a little tougher.”

While Longman was prepared for stiff competition she was never anxious, in either of her tournament matches.

“I actually played to just have fun,” Longman said. “I wasn’t worried. I [thought it would be difficult] because it was in the second round. I also like them to be tougher so I get more practice.”

Longman will have put in more practice prior to her match Wednesday against No. 7-seeded Brittnie Furuvald. Longman said she studies her opponents’ style in warm-ups and then makes adjustments prior to the start of the match.

“I see what their weakness is and I aim to hit it to their weakness,” Longman said. “I’m really excited.”

With his third match in the tournament, a 6-3, 6-4 victory over No. 9-seeded Kevin Cox, Chris Damion of Corona del Mar High is focused on making a run at the title.

“I feel if I can win this match then I can hopefully win the tournament,” Damion said.

Today Damion will face No. 8-seeded Connor Karen, a player he says he lost to before in an error-plagued game.

“This will be my toughest match so far,” Damion said.

Damion said he has been playing with shin splints in his right leg the entire tournament.

“If for a couple points I really run, then for a couple points I don’t run, then it throbs,” Damion said. “It also depends on how much I stretch.”

In the boys’ 18 singles round of 32, Bryan Ngo of Newport Beach lost to Brent Mazza, 6-2, 6-0. Ryan Caughren of Newport Beach lost to Andre Halabi, 4-6, 6-3, 6-0.

In the boys’ 16 singles round of 16, No. 15 Parker Rhodes of Corona del Mar High defeated No. 3 Alexios Halebian, 7-6 (3), 0-6, 6-1, to advance to the quarterfinals. No. 2 Omeed Ghassemi of Corona del Mar defeated No. 14 Darren Dahl, 6-2, 6-2.

In the boys’ 12 singles round of 16 Stephen Tenney of Newport Beach lost to Camden Marco, 6-2, 6-0. Murray Alexander of Corona del Mar lost to No. 3 Julian Ruffin, 6-2, 6-1. No. 5 Christian Ball of Newport Beach lost to Sammy Shamlou, 6-4, 6-3.

In the boys’ 10 singles round of 16, Matthew Mead of Newport Beach defeated Tyler Gaede of Corona del Mar, 6-3, 6-1. In the girls’ 18 singles round of 16, Chrissy Schwartz of Newport Beach lost to No. 1 Brooke Pletcher, 6-0, 6-3. Michelle Atkins of Newport Beach lost to Jordan Heitzner, 6-3, 6-3. No. 2 Hayley Young of Newport Beach lost to Joanna Pattugalan, 6-1, 6-3.

In the girls’ 16 singles round of 32, No. 6 Alexandra McIntosh of Costa Mesa defeated Shannah Henderson, 6-4, 6-4. In the girls’ 14 singles round of 32, Ariana Cernius of Newport Beach defeated Kristina Funahashi, then lost in the round of 16. Elizabeth Murray of Corona del Mar defeated Kelsey Davis of Corona del Mar, then lost in the round of 16.

Credit: MARK DUSTIN / DAILY PILOT Caption: Jill Casserly goes for the backhand against former Newport Harbor High teammate Sasha Dunlap during Tuesday’s match in the War by the Shore at the Balboa Bay Club Racquet Club. dpt.19-tennis-1-BPhotoInfoFM1T2QGS20060719j2mhp9ncCredit: MARK DUSTIN / DAILY PILOT Caption: (LA)Sasha Dunlap makes a backhand return during Tuesday’s match against Jill Casserly in the War by the Shore junior tennis tournament in Newport Beach. dpt.19-tennis-2-BPhotoInfoFM1T2QLD20060719j2mhphncCredit: MARK DUSTIN / DAILY PILOT Caption: (LA)Sasha Dunlap makes a backhand return during Tuesday’s match against Jill Casserly in the War by the Shore junior tennis tournament in Newport Beach.