Girls tennis: Elyria plays spoiler at SWC tournament

A couple of surprises turned the Southwestern Conference tournament into a footrace. Avon and Amherst both reached the finals in four of the five draws, but Elyria managed to play spoiler at third singles as Danica Knepper upset No. 1 seed Hasita Kotagiri from Avon 6-2, 0-6, (10-8) in the semifinals at Avon on Saturday. Third singles wasn't the only draw that featured a surprise. Amherst's No. 3-seeded second doubles team of Avery Hawley and Maria Bak got a little revenge against No. 2 Mina Rosenberg-Maya Kliment of Avon Lake. The Shoregals had just defeated the Comets in the Lorain County Athletic Administrators Association second doubles final 6-4, 7-5, but the Amherst duo won 4-6, 6-4, (10-3) in the SWC semifinals Saturday. Play will resume with the championship and third-place matches at 4 p.m. on Tuesday at Avon, who is seeking its seventh straight SWC title. The upsets at third singles and second doubles opens the door for the Comets as they enter Tuesday deadlocked with the Eagles for the team title. Each will have four playing in a final and another playing for third. If Amherst wins the tournament title, it will force a co-championship for the overall SWC title. Avon will win the overall title outright if it at least ties for first in the final tournament standings. Aside from the upset, Avon took care of business as Ashley DeHaven reached the first singles final dropping just three games in two matches. Its top seeds at second singles and both doubles flights were similarly dominant. Amherst's top three singles players also reached the final. Kayla Bussard remains unbeaten in singles play, dropping just one game in her two matches. She is the defending SWC runner-up at first singles. Sienna Nagy and Emma Timko, the No. 2 seeds in their draws, reached the second and third singles finals, but needed a matchbreaker to do so. Nagy rallied after losing the first set to Elyria's Amaya Williams to win 2-6, 6-3, (10-6). Timko faced a tough challenge from Midview's Danica Hazzard, but prevailed 6-4, 6-7 (4), (12-10). Avon Lake's first doubles team of Avery Brown and Malaya Marijan also took care of business to reach the final as the No. 2 seed. They faced a familiar opponent in the semifinals, North Ridgeville's Jordan Focht and Cassy Sole, who they just beat for the LCAAA first singles title Sept. 6. The Shoregals this time prevailed 6-3, 6-0. PLACEMENT MATCHES FIRST SINGLES — Championship: Kayla Bussard (Amherst) vs. Ashley DeHaven (Avon). Third place: Kathleen Boatwright (Avon Lake) vs. Maddie Chinchar (North Ridgeville). SECOND SINGLES — Championship: Nora Fiest (Avon) vs. Sienna Nagy (Amherst). Third place: Brynn Wuensch (Midview) vs. Amaya Williams (Elyria). THIRD SINGLES — Championship: Emma Timko (Amherst) vs. Danica Knepper (Elyria). Third place: Hasita Kotagiri (Avon) vs. Danica Hazzard (Midview). FIRST DOUBLES — Championship: Sam Jackson-Samantha Gault (Avon) vs. Avery Brown-Malaya Marijan (Avon Lake). Third place: Jordan Focht-Cassy Sole (North Ridgeville) vs. Cali Smith-Sadi Dorazio (Amherst). SECOND DOUBLES — Championship: Karina Marsden-Gracie Gedeon (Avon) vs. Avery Hawley-Maria Bak (Amherst). Third place: Mina Rosenberg-Maya Kliment (Avon Lake) vs. Aubree Kitchen-Julia Klepper (North Ridgeville). Contact Chris Sweeney at (440) 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Follow him @CSweeney1686 on X.