Big time bounce back

Schalick girls tennis team bounces back from Final Four loss to sweep rival Woodstown, rematch Tuesday for division title

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – The Schalick girls tennis team bounced back from a loss in the state semifinals to move a step closer to a division title and coach John Romano never doubted it would.

The Cougars grabbed at least a share of the Tri-County Conference Diamond Division crown Monday with a 5-0 sweep of Woodstown in the much-delayed and much-anticipated home-and-home series with the Wolverines.

They can clinch the division outright by beating the Wolverines at home Tuesday. A Woodstown win would create co-champions.

“The girls played really well, they did bounce back nicely,” Romano said. “Woodstown is a very good team. I expect them to come back (Tuesday) even tougher than they played us today. I don’t think it’ll be easy by any stretch of the imagination. We’ll go about it business as usual, like we did all year long.”

The last time the Cougars (20-3) were on the court, they were swept by eventual state champion New Providence 5-0 in the Group I state semifinals. They had beaten post-season nemesis Gateway and top-seeded Haddon Twp. in the last two matches to get there, but were a different environment at the Mercer County Tennis Center.

“It’s no knock (on who they played along the way), but you’re playing a top-caliber team in New Providence; it’s just a different level,” Romano said. “We had a fantastic win against Haddon Twp., a fantastic win against Gateway and we weren’t ready for it (the Final Four).

“Coming back down to the level we are here, we knew what to expect. We knew they were going to put their best foot forward. It was pretty straightforward. We handled business and that was it.”

The teams were supposed to get the series started at the beginning of the season, but that match got postponed by weather. It later was postponed to accommodate the opening round of the sectional tournament, and then the sectional finals.

They knew the high-intensity rivalry would be squeezed into a couple days and now the division will be decided after a state champion was crowned.

“In the beginning of the year we have short-term goals and this is one of them,” Romano said. “Long term is try to win a state championship. The first one to be checked off we hoped would be the division and now it’s the last one.

“It makes it just as sweet. We’re just as happy for it as if this would’ve been in September. We’re happy to get a chance to lock this up tomorrow.”

Woodstown (18-2) had won five in a row – all by 5-0 sweeps – after bowing out in the second round of sectional tournament.

SCHALICK 5, WOODSTOWN 0
Singles 
Rachael Irizarry (S) def. Abigail Melle, 6-3, 7-5
Grace O’Neill (S) def. Gabby Kurpis, 6-1, 6-0
Ally Green (S) def. Cara Delia, 6-4, 6-2
Doubles
Katie Little-Emma Adams (S) def. Vivian Ward-Nathalie Neron, 6-0, 6-1
Miya Watkins-Rachel Goranson (S) def. Julianna Lindenmuth-Molly Curtis, 6-4, 6-4
Records: Schalick 20-3, Woodstown 18-2.