By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Bloomfield Hills Academy of the Sacred Heart had its first outdoor practice this season near the end of March. When co-coaches Judy Hehs and Jean Koehler showed up to the courts, their players already were in the midst of their usual warm-up routine.

Sacred Heart brought back 10 players from last season’s Division 4 runner-up that finished only three points behind Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian. And when those players got to Holland and the surrounding courts used because of Friday’s rain storms, they again knew what needed to be done.

The Gazelles, relying on four top-seeded doubles teams, finished with 29 points Saturday to claim their first MHSAA championship, by seven points over runner-up Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central.

Sacred Heart pairs won individual championships at Nos. 1, 3 and 4, and the No. 2 pair finished runner-up. That No. 1 team of Kelsey Nagle and Emily Nash also played the top flight in 2011, and the No. 3 pair of Heidi Lemon and Sarah Spangler played together last season at No. 4.

“It’s really helpful when you can bring sophomores to a state tournament, and they’re hungry and eager to learn, and you come close,” Hehs said. “Then you bring them back as juniors, and they get it.”

The No. 4 doubles team of Kendall Lehmann and Teresa Walawender also won their flight for the Gazelles, while the team's singles players either scored to their seeds or surpassed them. Kelsey Hildebrand was seeded sixth at No. 2 singles but advanced to the semifinals, as did No. 3 player Tyler Papazian, who was seeded fifth.

No. 2 doubles Hannah Gerrard and Elia Wilson fell just shy of matching their top seed, but still finished runners-up at their flight.

“We left there (last season) in shock; how could we have been so close and not done it?” Hehs said. “But we had a group of kids, and they were totally committed to this. This was their goal.”

The most intriguing singles championship match came at No. 1. Ann Arbor Greenhills senior Kasey Gardiner won her third MHSAA individual championship – she also claimed titles in 2009 and 2010 – by downing Kalamazoo Hackett’s Meika Ashby. Ashby won the No. 1 singles title last season.

Click for full results.

Division 1 at Midland Tennis Center

The seeds didn’t stack up for Grosse Pointe South to make a run at the favorites this season. But the Blue Devils played above those numbers to claim their 13th championship in the 31-year history of the Girls Tennis Finals, edging runners-up Clarkston and Port Huron Northern by a point each.

Only four top seeds won their flights – including Grosse Pointe South’s No. 2 doubles Amelia Boccaccio and Carrie Lynch, who claimed a three-set win over Port Huron Northern that was among difference-makers. The Blue Devils also got a championship at No. 4 singles by Maggie Sweeney, who entered as a fourth seed.

No. 1 singles was claimed by a fifth seed – Davina Nguyen of Utica against Clarkston’s Katie Brozovich, who won No. 3 singles in 2011. Brozovich's teammate Lexi Baylis defended her championship at No. 2 with a straight-set win.

Click for full results.

Division 2 at Kalamazoo College

Birmingham Seaholm won only one individual flight. But the Maples claimed enough points to edge Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern by two – 27-25 – at the top of the final standings.

The championship was Seaholm's third, but first since 2004. It finished runner-up last season and also in 2005 and 2006. Forest Hills Northern had won or shared the last six Division 2 championships.

FHN made its push by winning two doubles flights and advancing to the championship match of the other two. But Seaholm also reached the finals in four flights, including Nos. 2-4 singles – and won the deciding match in the No. 3 doubles final when top-seeded Jackie Meier and Rachel Wilson defeated FHN's Stephanie Nguyen and Lindsey Schichtel in straight sets.

The tournament was not without surprises. The Huskies got doubles points from pairs that finished far better than they were seeded – Shelby Moored and Lauren Gager were a fourth seed and won at No. 2, and Schichtel and Nguyen were the sixth seed at No. 3.

No. 1 and No. 4 singles both were won by fifth seeds – Mason’s Abby Perkins in the top flight and Grand Rapids Northview’s Claire Stam in the fourth.

Click for full results.

Division 3 at Holly/Fenton

Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood earned its 14^th championship, and did so after the first day of play before finishing the effort Saturday with 34 points – nine more than runner-up East Grand Rapids.

No. 1 singles standout Alexandria Najarian defended her championship with a two-set win over Grand Rapids Catholic Central’s Sydney Liggins. Cranbrook-Kingswood also swept doubles with wins from Megan Simmons and Meg Phyle at No. 1, Claire Huttenlocher and Maria Landi at No. 2, Briana Letica and Holly Meers at No. 3 and Lauren Lanzon and Christina Roualet at No. 4.

All of those winning flights were seeded one or two entering the tournament.

Click for full results.