By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Covington Latin sophomore Sara Wantanabe became her school’s first 9th Region girls singles champion since 2001 on Friday when she defeated Ellie Zureick of Cooper, 7-5, 6-4, in the region finals at Notre Dame.
It was the third time that the two players met in the championship match. Zureick defeated Wantanabe in the 2018 and 2019 finals. Last year, the entire high school tennis season was cancelled due to the pandemic.
On Friday, Wantanabe fell behind, 4-1, in both sets and battled back to become the second member of her family to claim a 9th Region tennis championship.
Her oldest brother, Toshi, won boys singles titles in 2018 and 2019. Her other brother, Kazu, was region runner-up in boys singles this week and in 2019.
The doubles final was a close match between Notre Dame teammates. Top-seeded Lauren Janzaruk and Taylor Meenach got past second-seeded Hailey Fullkenkamp and Samantha Bailey, 7-6 (1), 6-4, to become the Pandas’ first doubles champs since 2017.
In the first set, Bailey and Fullenkamp made it 6-6 before losing the tiebreaker. Janzaruk and Meenach went up 5-2 in the second set and held off another rally to win the title.
Notre Dame finished on top in the team standings with 12 points, followed by Beechwood with nine. The top four finishers in singles and doubles advance to the state tournament June 1-3 at the University of Kentucky.
The top four finishers in the 10th Region boys and girls tennis tournaments were decided on Friday with seven players from Campbell County and two from Scott advancing to Monday’s semifinals.
In the biggest upset of the tournament, Sofia Allen and Elise Henderson of Scott knocked off the No. 2 seed in girls doubles to reach the final four.
Campbell County’s top-seeded duo of Sydney Melton and Izzy McDowell won their match in straight sets. Madison Copes and Anna Maren of Campbell County also advanced.
The top four seeds in girls singles all made it to the semifinals, including No. 1 Natalie Smith and No. 4 Annika White of Campbell County. The only local player left in the boys tournament is Campbell County junior Nick Wittrock, the No. 3 seed in singles.
The 10th Region semifinal and championship matches are set for Monday at Campbell County High School beginning at 5 p.m. Semifinal matches involving local players are listed below with seeds before names.
BOYS SINGLES
3-Nick Wittrock (Campbell County) vs. 2-Tennyson Prator (George Rogers Clark)
GIRLS SINGLES
1-Natalie Smith (Campbell County) vs. 3-Sarah Dunaway (Harrison County)
4-Anika White (Campbell County) vs. 2-Katie Mulcahy (Bourbon County)
GIRLS DOUBLES
1-Sydney Melton-Izzy McDowell (Campbell County) vs. 3-Liza Gossett-Jansen Sullivan (Harrison County)
Sofia Allen-Elise Henderson (Scott) vs. Madison Copes-Anna Maren (Campbell County)