The High School North girls’ tennis team was enjoying an undefeated season until it ran up against a wall in the NJSIAA state tournament with a seminfinal loss against Montgomery on October 13.
The team was cruising toward a spot in the sectional final when it fell 3-2 to Montgomery, a team it had never played before.
Harinee Suthakar, Mercer Couty Tournament champion, won 6-4, 6-1 at second singles, and Jessica Mao fought took a three-set match at third singles 1-6, 7-5, 6-3.
“She’s one of the toughest opponents I’ve faced. She’s a really good player,” Mao said of Montgomery opponent Emily Szkudlarski. “I think dropping the first set was a sign that I had to pick it up a little and not give her too many easy balls. It really tested my mental toughness. You have to stay positive and never give up.”
Unfortunately Mao’s win was for naught, as Montgomery had already won at first singles, first doubles, and second doubles.
“I was hoping to get one of the doubles but they were very strong,” said North coach Craig Frame. “We tried to keep the ball away from them at the net. It’s a matter of execution. They tried a couple things but they didn’t pan out.”
In the quarterfinals on October 11, the Knights defeated South Brunswick 3-2. Suthakar and Mao won at second and third singles, and the team of Sheena Desai and Barbara Zhan won at second doubles.
High School North started the tournament strong with a 5-0 victory over North Brunswick in the first round of the tournament on October 6.
Baskar led the sweep with a victory at first singles, 6-0, 6-2. Suthakar at second singles, Mao at third-singles, and the second doubles team of Desai and Zahn won by shutout. The first doubles team of Arielle Bosworth and Nyambe Tuchscherer won 6-0, 6-2.
