H.S. Tennis: Amelia Tomak, Julia Kacenjar team up for strong team, great leadership

Behind every great team are a couple of great leaders. Seniors Amelia Tomak and Julia Kacenjar are just that for Avon, giving it the depth required to be consistently ranked in Division I this season. "They're the heart of our team," Avon coach Eric Korey said. "They're the biggest cheerleaders for their teammates. They push everyone to get better. It's like having two assistant coaches on the court at all times. Their presence will be sorely missed next year I'm sure. "It's a hard job being a team captain when you have players who are so superb, and they do a great job balancing those responsibilities." Though they've played just about every position for Avon, they've found the most postseason success together, teaming up again to reach their second straight district tournament. They'll look to keep their careers going for one more week, seeking one of the six state tournament bids allocated to the Division I doubles draw of the Springside district tournament, which begins Thursday at 9 a.m. with the opening round and quarterfinals. Play concludes Saturday at 8:30 a.m. with the back draw, semifinals and placement matches. "That would be crazy," Tomak said. "There would be tears of joy." Last season, Tomak and Kacenjar played second and third singles, respectively. This year, they were expected to play first doubles for most of the season as the addition of Natalie Smitek at first singles moved everyone down a slot. But Korey said the team had to switch gears as Tomak was needed more at third singles because of the Eagles' challenging schedule. All she did was go 19-0. Kacenjar played exclusively at first doubles, going 21-10 with multiple partners, including a 13-7 record with junior Victoria Sidoti. Kacenjar paired with Tomak three times in the regular season. Their lone loss came to North Canton Hoover's Angelina Koinoglou and Claire Wood — who finished second at the Canton sectional, setting up a potential rematch in the district semifinals. Despite the limited regular-season action, they fell back on their chemistry. "We just tried to play together as much as possible," Kacenjar said. "We practiced together all offseason, so that just gave us a good dynamic and helps us communicate well on the court. Her serve is super awesome. When they try to return that, I can cover at the net and try to poach. She's super consistent with groundstrokes." It also helps that Tomak plays right-handed while Kacenjar is a lefty, allowing them to cover both sides of the court with their forehands. "We're a good team because we're also friends outside of tennis," Tomak said. "We know each other, we're pretty patient with each other. Julia complements me well because when I'm doing something wrong she can help me fix it. She's always doing the things right that I'm doing wrong. We always have each other's back." The past two years the pair went 5-2 in the regular season and 7-4 in the postseason. Each year, they knocked off Kat and Gabby Yates of Midview in the quarterfinals to reach the district tournament. The Yates sisters — who mostly played first and second singles for the Middies — were seeded fourth both times. Tomak and Kacenjar won 6-2, 6-1 in 2021. This time around, Avon needed 24 games and a tiebreaker to advance 7-5, 7-6. "We always love playing the Yates sisters because they're super awesome," Kacenjar said. "I loved that we had a competitive match because that just makes it feel more rewarding. We both were playing very well, being consistent. We warmed up fast, started off strong and our serves were going good." Being a No. 3 seed means they will avoid a sectional champion in the opening round, which is significant because with six bids up for grabs, anyone who wins their first match has two chances to qualify: by winning a quarterfinal match Thursday or a consolation semifinal Saturday. "Being seniors, I'm sure they realize this is their last big dance," Korey said. "I noticed on Monday at sectionals they were a little bit inspirational. They always play hard, but I could just tell they were on a mission right from the very start. "I can count on one or two hands the number of back-to-back district qualifiers I've had in my 23 years coaching. This is a very special thing." Contact Chris Sweeney at (440) 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Follow him @CSweeney1686 on Twitter.