The York girls tennis team will be well represented at this week’s (Oct. 22-24) IHSA Class 2A girls state singles tournament in the Northwest suburbs.
York senior Evelyn Kahl and junior Samantha Bhagavan both qualified for state at the recent Class 2A York Sectional at Berens Park in Elmhurst.
Kahl finished third in the singles division, while Bhagavan was fourth.
As a team, the Dukes tied for second with 17 points.
Kahl started the sectional singles tournament with a 6-0, 6-0 win against Riverside-Brookfield and then downed Leyden 6-0, 6-0 before dropping a 6-4, 6-1 match to Wheaton-Warrenville South.
Kahl, a second-team all-stater in doubles last year, defeated teammate Bhagavan 6-1, 6-0 in the third-place match.
Bhagavan, who earned her first state finals berth, defeated Proviso West 6-0, 6-0 in her first match and downed Riverside-Brookfield 6-0, 6-1 in her next match. Bhagavan lost to Wheaton-Warrenville South 6-0, 6-1 in the semifinals and to Kahl in the third-place match.
The York doubles team of Ainsley Williams and Tessa Jones defeated Proviso East 6-0, 6-0 but lost to Benet Academy 6-0, 6-1 in their second match. York’s other doubles team of Margo Williams and Suriana Kansal lost to Wheaton-Warrenville South 6-0, 6-1 in their first match.
Earlier, York honored 24 seniors during a non-conference match against Riverside Brookfield at Berens Park. York won 9-2. Coach Kara Dollaske noted York’s seniors are represented across all four of its teams. The varsity match consisted of an all-senior lineup.
York, which finished fifth during the regular season of the always tough West Suburban Conference Silver Division, also went neck and neck against Barrington in a college-style doubles/singles format and lost 8-7 in the non-conference match.
“The WSC Silver is incredibly strong this year,” Dollaske said. “Unfortunately, injuries have been a bit of a factor for several players this year, which has affected our lineup. But many players have stepped up into those lineup positions and have been giving it their all.”
Dollaske noted Bhagavan played the last two weeks of the regular season at the No. 1 singles spot and had key victories against Downers Grove North and New Trier.
Ainsley Williams and Jones, a freshman, have been consistently battling the No. 1 doubles position “and are playing great tennis against some of the toughest doubles teams in the state,” Dollaske said recently.
At the JV level, the JV 1 team won the eight-team York invitational and took second at the Downers Grove South all doubles tournament.
The York JV2 team won the York quad and beat some top JV teams this year, including Benet and Fenwick, Dollaske added.
The JV 3 team won the Willowbrook quad, the Minooka quad and a home York quad.
Dollaske noted the York sectional featured off-and-on rainy weather this past Friday, which forced some early matches indoors at Courts Plus in Elmhurst.
“Many thanks to the Elmhurst Park District for quickly. Providing their available mid-afternoon courts to us so we could keep the tournament moving,” she said. “Saturday was a beautiful, crisp day for tennis.”
