‘Unmatched chemistry.’ 11th Region tennis champs include LexCath doubles sweep
Lexington Catholic seniors Eva Quinn and Sophia Miller have been waiting for their region championship moment together since they were sophomores, when they narrowly lost in a tiebreaker.
So it meant everything to the friends when, in the final point of their 6-4, 6-2 doubles win against Paul Laurence Dunbar’s Vidya Sethuraman and Hannah Chandler, Quinn hit a perfectly placed ball which was returned out of bounds, cementing the long-awaited 11th Region title at the Bluegrass Racquet Club. As Quinn put it, “we’ve been working all of high school for this exact moment.”
“The second it was ad-in us,” Quinn said. “And we could win the whole thing, I literally thought to myself, ‘Just this one point, just get it done.’ And the second that ball hit out, all of my tennis, just everything seemed worth it. Everything felt so worth it.”
“We were both paused,” Miller continued. “Just watching the ball go back. And I remember going, ‘Please, please, please.’ And then it landed.”
“And we both saw it go out,” Quinn finished. “We both jumped in the air. It was the happiest moment ever.”
After first being paired as doubles partners for their sophomore year, Quinn and Miller didn’t compete together as juniors. The duo didn’t even compete together as seniors until the region tournament rolled around again.
While Quinn focused on singles, Miller “bounced around between a few partners” while she wasn’t competing individually. “And then I was like, ‘It’s our last year,’” Miller explained. “’Let’s get it together and win this.’”
The duo had no issues reigniting the chemistry or remembering how to win together. They did, however, make the conscious decision to switch returning sides ahead of the region tournament. When it worked in their favor in the opening round, they decided to keep it, as “it kind of throws everyone off.”
“My backhand is definitely stronger,” Quinn said. “And I’ve always played on backhand side, but we decided to switch it up, and somehow it works better.”
The formation contributed throughout the week, but Quinn and Miller agreed that both their communication and their chemistry felt different in the championship match.
“Recently, between points,” Miller said, “we’ve been talking to each other. Even if it’s just like, ‘OK, let’s go, yeah,’ just something. And I don’t know, I just looked at Eva and I go, ‘Let’s go.’”
“We were like, ‘We’re gonna do this today,’” Quinn said. “We had unmatched chemistry today that we’ve never had before. We were working really well together. Usually, we play kind of as two singles players, and today we really played as a doubles team, which helped a lot. She got amazing balls within the net, I made volleys today, she made her serves in, I made my serves in.”
“Everything was on for us,” Miller said.
“We were in our element,” Quinn said. “And it could not have been a better match.”
Catholic sweeps doubles matches
While Quinn and Miller’s title run demonstrated how valuable a longtime connection can truly be, their teammates showed the opposite side of the coin — and still managed to come out on top.
Lexington Catholic’s Clark Malone and Jacob Holland had played doubles together just once ahead of the 11th Region Tournament, and they were forced to learn championship-level communication on the fly in hopes of making a run at state.
After three different sites and a series of shifts due to the thunderstorms rolling through Central Kentucky, not to mention a defaulted match in the round of 16, their efforts were rewarded with a title-winning victory in two sets, 6-0, 6-0, over Paul Laurence Dunbar’s underclassman duo of Thomas Chandler and Atharva Dang.
“We communicated more than we did in opening rounds,” Holland said, “which I think shows in the result. So I’m proud of both of us because we’ve never really played doubles before, and they’re a really good team.”
Strong individually — Malone and Holland will each compete in singles tennis during Monday’s 11th Region team finals — and still working to grow their on-court chemistry, Holland, a sophomore, said they felt doubles tennis “would be the best option” for a “good run at state.” Malone, a junior, said that, despite the learning curve, they’re already making progress; a fact on display throughout their championship match.
“Other matches before this,” Malone said, “we were kind of learning. And we were losing points and games that we wouldn’t be losing now because we now communicate better and play better together.”
Redemption for Fomby
Paul Laurence Dunbar freshman Evan Fomby found himself on the wrong end of a tiebreaker in last year’s individual 11th Region singles title match, but he stayed focused throughout a challenging week of matches to earn the championship this year.
“I’m just happy that I was able to stay focused throughout the whole week,” Fomby said. “Playing for five matches straight is pretty tough, and I’m glad that I came back after last year. Because I lost a close one last year in the final, and that was pretty rough.”
In order for Fomby to defeat Lafayette junior Charlie Mooney in two sets, 6-3, 6-2, the freshman relied on his experience gained through traveling with the United States Tennis Association, and channeled that to “stay mentally tough in tight moments.”
“I think I did well,” Fomby said, “getting a good start and attacking my opponent’s second serve.”
Fomby, who will also be competing on behalf of Dunbar in the 11th Region team finals, said confidence will be key to continuing his success for the remainder of the high school season, especially during the upcoming state tournament.
“I just need to remind myself that I might be playing better opponents than me,” Fomby said. “And I just need to be confident in myself, and in my strokes, and remind myself that I’ve played well before, so I can do it.”
Zakic shines for Scott County
Scott County senior Sydney Zakic was “exhilarated” following her 6-3, 2-6, 1-0 [10-8] singles victory, a highly competitive match that resulted in a win in a tiebreaker against Lexington Christian freshman Katie Lankford.
“I mean, it’s so exciting to get to play such a great player like Katie is,” Zakic said, “and to finish off in a tiebreak, especially my senior year, that’s an adrenaline rush. So it was really great to get that done.”
Having played tennis “as long as (she) could pick up a racket,” Zakic, like many of the student-athletes participating in the region tournament, has no shortage of experience. Zakic prioritizes maintaining a calm composure and the belief in herself while on the court but noted that experience becomes most important “in those tight moments,” like the championship tiebreaker.
“If you truly believe in yourself and you just leave it all on the court,” Zakic said, “you’re gonna be happy with the result. Katie is also a very experienced player. But experience matters whenever you’re ... like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is a deuce point, this is neck-and-neck.’ And I just toss the ball up and hit a confident serve. That’s where experience comes in, where you can control your nerves like that.”
The lone non-Lexingtonian in any of Friday’s finals matches, knew she wanted to attack the week with all she had, and that “to have it for Scott County really means a lot.” In the final moments before the tiebreak, she kept her breathing still, understood the weight of the match and took it.
“I thought, you know, it’s my senior year,” Zakic said. “If I don’t leave it all out here, I’m gonna regret it. So I just went out there and left it all on the court. And the result was what it was.”
All region champions and runners-up will participate in the upcoming state tournament. The 11th Region team tournament championships will be held at Sayre at 4:30 p.m. Monday, when Paul Laurence Dunbar will look to defend its boys title against Lexington Catholic, and Lexington Catholic and Henry Clay will vie for the girls title.
11th Region Tournament
(All semifinalists advance to the state tournament)
BOYS’ SINGLES:
Champion: Evan Fomby, Paul Laurence Dunbar (6-3, 6-2). Finalist: Charlie Mooney, Lafayette. Semifinalists: David Tofan, Model; Jonah Trimble, Henry Clay.
GIRLS’ SINGLES:
Champion: Sydney Zakic, Scott County (6-3, 2-6, 1-0 [10-8]). Finalist: Katie Lankford, Lexington Christian. Semifinalists: Nicole Hanna, Lexington Catholic; Stella Benedetti, Lexington Catholic.
BOYS’ DOUBLES:
Champion: Clark Malone/Jacob Holland, Lexington Catholic (6-0, 6-0). Finalist: Thomas Chandler/Atharva Dang, Paul Laurence Dunbar. Semifinalists: Nikan Rosenau/Raymond Yu, Paul Laurence Dunbar; Max Hixson/Mason Johnson, Henry Clay.
GIRLS’ DOUBLES:
Champion: Eva Quinn/Sophia Miller, Lexington Catholic (6-4, 6-2). Finalist: Vidya Sethuraman/Hannah Chandler, Paul Laurence Dunbar. Semifinalists: Anna Pickrell/Emery Cassidy, Henry Clay; Kaitlin Gish, Charlotte Young, Henry Clay.
ALL-REGION TEAMS
Boys: Evan Fomby, Paul Laurence Dunbar; Charlie Mooney, Lafayette; Jonah Trimble, Henry Clay; David Tofan, Model; Clark Malone, Lexington Catholic; Jacob Holland, Lexington Catholic; Thomas Chandler, Paul Laurence Dunbar; Atharva Dang, Paul Laurence Dunbar; Nikan Rosenau, Paul Laurence Dunbar; Raymond Yu, Paul Laurence Dunbar; Max Hixson, Henry Clay; Mason Johnson, Henry Clay; Dhaarick Vinod, Sayre; Jack Mooney, Sayre; Noah Habash, Great Crossing; Sam Grimm, Lexington Catholic.
Girls: Sydney Zakic, Scott County; Katie Lankford, Lexington Christian; Nicole Hanna, Lexington Catholic; Stella Benedetti, Lexington Catholic; Vidya Sethuraman, Paul Laurence Dunbar; Hannah Chandler, Paul Laurence Dunbar; Kaitlin Gish, Henry Clay; Charlotte Young, Henry Clay; Anna Pickrell, Henry Clay; Emery Cassidy, Henry Clay; Eva Quinn, Lexington Catholic, Sophia Miller, Lexington Catholic; Olivia Watson, Sayre; Lauren Spraggins, Lexington Christian; Delaney Brown, Model; Anna Tofan, Model.
OTHER HONORS:
11th Region Coach of the Year Award: Boys — Britt Chandler, Paul Laurence Dunbar; Girls — Mark Plymale, Lexington Catholic.
USTA Senior Sportsmanship Award: Boys — Max Hixson, Henry Clay; Girls — Katie Roth, Lexington Christian.
