Northville Doubles Up, Holding Off Familiar Foe to Complete Repeat
By
Perry A. Farrell
Special for MHSAA.com
May 30, 2026
MIDLAND – The Northville girls tennis team was attempting to repeat as Lower Peninsula Division 1 champion this weekend and had 21 points entering Saturday’s final rounds at Midland Tennis Center and needing to hold off Utica Eisenhower again to finish the run.
Bolstered by three doubles flight championships, the Mustangs finished the day with 27 points, and Eisenhower finished with 23 and second place for the third-straight season. The Eagles had entered Saturday trailing by three points.
Northville picked up important points at No. 3 doubles as second seed Lucia Lachapelle and Aadya Pullalarevu downed Pioneer top seeds Maryn Etheridge and Ayla Altinsel 6-1, 6-0.
Lachapelle and Pullalarevu had finished No. 2 runners-up in 2025.
“We played them in the regular season and lost, so we knew we’d have to eventually play them in the Finals,’’ Lachapelle. “We have this saying in our program ‘play like goldfish’ because goldfish have short memories.
“A second straight title shows how strong our program is.’’
Said Pullalarevu: “We were going into the match, we knew it would help us win a state title. We were obviously nervous. Losing in the Finals (last year) helped us for this year. We were focused on having confidence in our shots and each other.’’
Northville’s No. 4 doubles team of Michelle Lee and Emma Murphy pulled the team closer to the title with 7-6, 7-5 victory over Arya Iyer and Vibha Krishna of Troy.
“It was stressful,’’ said Lee. “It was tie-break, after tie-break after tie-break.
“In the back of your mind you think about winning states. Since freshman year I played singles, and for my senior year I wanted to switch it up. Luckily I got paired up with Emma. Every day at practice, we worked out butts off and we powered through this chaotic match.’’
Northville also won No. 2 doubles as Sravya Doppalapudi and Francine Ong defeated Novi’s Emily Backus and Sruthi Karthik 5-7, 6-1, 6-0. Eisenhower captured No. 1 doubles as Kara Lu and Alexis Gabriel ousted Troy’s Nainika Jasti and Hannah Wanstreet, 6-4, 6-4.
Gabriel was no stranger to state titles.
“This is my third time,’’ she said. “Freshman year I lost in the quarterfinals, sophomore year I won at No. 1 doubles and junior year I won at No. 2 doubles. It’s always exciting.’’
Eisenhower sophomore Morgan Emerick ran her high school record to a combined 74-1 with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Isabelle Hult at No. 2 singles, claiming her second-straight Finals flight title.
“I hope to go to No. 1 singles next year,’’ said Emerick. “It feels really good to win two times. I try not to get too nervous. Just keep going and stay focused.’’
Clarkston junior Kayla Lemke captured the No. 1 singles championship over Saline senior Emerson Jones, but it wasn’t the way she wanted.
Jones, the top seed, slipped and hurt her right knee with the score tied 3-3 in the first set. She eventually got the knee wrapped and tried to continue. She fell behind 5-3 before retiring, unable to play with confidence or ball-striking ability after the injury.
“I definitely wanted a good match,’’ said Lemke. “She deserved it. She’s a senior. She’s worked so hard for this. I hate that it ended this way, but I’m happy how we both played and how it first started.’’
Portage Central’s top-seeded Aarna Betala captured the No. 3 singles title with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Holland West Ottawa’s Sydney Shafer. Rochester freshman Jilly Knoester, the top seed at No. 4 singles, clinched that flight with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Eisenhower senior Sofia Gardner.
“I was just out there playing tennis,’’ said Knoester. “I broke her in each set. It was fun.
“I lost one match this year to (Bloomfield Hills) Marian. The season was exciting. I was happy to have the chance to play. I think I learned mistakes are part of the game, and it’s not over until it’s actually over.’’
(Photos by High School Sports Scene.)
Clarkston's No. 1 Rises to New Challenge
May 10, 2012
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Take the word "enthusiastic," make it an adverb, grab a thesaurus, and find a number of ways to characterize how Katie Brozovich plays tennis.
Her energy and spirit show through in how she puts her body into every shot. And they come out when she’s frustrated with herself and fires up an impromptu personal pep talk on the court.
“When I’m frustrated, I’m not the one to hold it in. I have to say something,” Brozovich said. “I’m not saying things critically. I’m just working on not bringing myself down.
“I get a lot of people (looking like), ‘What are you doing?’”
The answer: Winning every match.
Brozovich, in her first season at No. 1 singles after dominating lower flights, is 15-0 atop the lineup for the reigning Division 1 champion Wolves.
She gets a Second Half High 5 this week for winning her flight at the Holly Red and White Invitational, beating Port Huron Northern’s Taylor Sweeney 6-4, 6-1 in the championship match. Clarkston, ranked No. 4 in the state coaches poll, tied Division 2 No. 1 Birmingham Marian for the team championship – ahead of Division 1 top-ranked Port Huron Northern, No. 7 Ann Arbor Huron and No. 8 Midland Dow.
Sweeney advanced to last season’s MHSAA Quarterfinals at No. 1. But Brozovich is plenty used to top competition – and fully embracing the opportunity to finish her high school career playing against the best.
She’s been in Clarkston’s singles lineup all four years of high school – she played No. 3 as a freshman, before finishing MHSAA runner-up at No. 2 as a sophomore and then winning the No. 3 championship last spring.
“Each year I was happy with the spot I was playing. But I thought it was a better opportunity to play (No.) 1 because of the big competition,” Brozovich said. “That what I like. I felt good, and I prepared myself for it.”
The Clarkston singles lineup was set to be loaded again this spring with No. 1 Semifinalist Gabriella Spindler a senior and reigning No. 2 champion Lexi Baylis also expected back. But Spindler opted to not play this spring, and Brozovich and Baylis battled through two three-set challenge matches to determine who would fill the top spot.
“Katie is a beast. She wanted that number one spot, and being her senior year, she was not going to take anything less,” Clarkston coach Becky Freeman said. “This year, being a senior, she knows what we’re looking for. She’s seen it all – the good, bad and ugly.”
Brozovich has signed with Bowling Green, a regular contender in the Mid-American Conference, and expects to be part of the lineup as a freshman. Her aunt, Sue (Brozovich) Kaleel, was a four-time champion at Miami (Ohio). Click to read more about Brozovich's family connections, dream matchup and future endeavors.
PHOTO: Clarkston's Katie Brozovich prepares to return a shot during her No. 3 singles match at last season's MHSAA Division 1 Final.