Despite playing in the hottest portion of the day with temperatures approaching 100 degrees, Salpointe Catholic’s girls tennis team defeated No. 11 Sabino 5-3 at the Tucson Racquet Club on Wednesday, in the quarterfinals of the Division II state tournament.
Third-seeded Salpointe moves on to the semifinals of to take on No. 2 Notre Dame Prep at Paseo Racquet Center in Glendale on Friday at noon. Top-seeded Catalina Foothills, which has reached seven straight championship matches, faces No. 4 Buckeye in the opposite semifinal.
The Lancers started out strong on Wednesday by taking the first three singles matches of the day, but dropped two of the next three singles matches to take a 4-2 lead after doubles play.
Salpointe’s No. 1 singles player, senior Isa Anaya, lost her match in straight sets (5-7, 2-6) to Sabino’s No. 1 Janine Fernando. Meanwhile, Salpointe’s No. 2 singles player senior Hailey Swanson defeated Sabino’s No. 2 Lucy Brownell in straight sets (6-3, 6-2).
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Sabino closed the gap by taking a set in doubles play to make it 4-3, but Salpointe’s No. 2 doubles team of Natalie Valcke and Emma Kinnison defeated Sabino’s No. 2 team of Brownwell and Kelsey Glassberg 8-3 to secure the victory.
“We were kind of expecting (the match to be close) after the last one, but we’re really proud of ourselves,” Anaya said.
Looking forward, Salpointe has an off day before hitting the road to take on Notre Dame, which defeated No. 15 Chandler Prep 6-0 in the first round on April 27 and No. 7 Page 5-0 on Wednesday.
Notre Dame is a perfect 15-0 on the season and is one of just two teams ranked ahead of the Lancers in postseason play.
“I’m really looking forward to playing Notre Dame,” Salpointe coach Theresa Sperduto said. “They always play tough, we always play tough, so it’ll be a fun match. I’m looking forward to it and my girls are ready.”
POSTSEASON GLANCE
BOYS TENNIS
DIVISION II STATE TOURNAMENT
First-round results
No. 1 Catalina Foothills 5, No. 16 Surprise Willow Canyon 0
No. 2 Pusch Ridge Christian 5, No. 15 Canyon del Oro 0
No. 6 Salpointe Catholic 5, No. 11 Chandler Prep 0
No. 8 Nogales 5, No. 9 Scottsdale Notre Dame 0
No. 4 Mesa Skyline 5, No. 13 Rincon/University 2
Quarterfinal results
No. 1 Catalina Foothills 6, No. 8 Nogales 0
No. 2 Pusch Ridge Christian 5, No. 7 Phoenix Thunderbird 0
No. 6 Salpointe Catholic 5, No. 3 Buckeye Verrado 0
Semifinals – Friday at Paseo Racquet Center in Glendale
No. 4 Mesa Skyline vs. No. 1 Catalina Foothills, 9 a.m.
No. 6 Salpointe Catholic vs. No. 2 Pusch Ridge Christian, 10 a.m.
DIVISION III STATE TOURNAMENT
First-round results
No. 9 Desert Christian beats No. 8 Tanque Verde by forfeit
Quarterfinal results
No. 9 Desert Christian 6, No. 1 Scottsdale Prep 3
Semifinals – Friday at Paseo Racquet Center in Glendale
No. 9 Desert Christian vs. No. 5 Arizona College Prep, 1 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
DIVISION II STATE TOURNAMENT
First-round results
No. 1 Catalina Foothills 5, No. 16 Mesa Skyline 0
No. 3 Salpointe Catholic 5, No. 14 Glendale Cactus 0
No. 5 Rincon/University 6, No. 12 Buckeye Verrado 0
No. 8 Nogales 5, No. 9 Phoenix Country Day 0
No. 7 Page 5, No. 10 Douglas 0
No. 11 Sabino 5, No. 6 Yuma Gila Ridge 2
Wednesday’s second round results
No. 1 Catalina Foothills 6, No. 8 Nogales 0 (Tuesday)
No. 3 Salpointe Catholic 5, No. 11 Sabino 3
No. 4 Buckeye 5, No. 5 Rincon/University 2
Semifinals – Friday at Paseo Racquet Center in Glendale
No. 4 Buckeye vs. No. 1 Catalina Foothills, 11 a.m.
No. 3 Salpointe Catholic vs. No. 2 Scottsdale Notre Dame, noon
DIVISION III STATE TOURNAMENT
First-round results
No. 8 Walden Grove 7, No. 9 Scottsdale Prep 2
No. 7 Benson 5, No. 10 St. David 0
No. 2 Miami 5, No. 15 Tanque Verde 2
Wednesday’s second round results
No. 1 Safford 5, No. 8 Walden Grove 4
