Preview: History-Making Opportunities

May 29, 2014

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Every athlete playing in this weekend’s Lower Peninsula Girls Tennis Finals will achieve a notable feat, be it personal or for her school.

But Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood’s Alexandria Najarian could finish Saturday at Kalamazoo College among the most accomplished players in MHSAA history.

Najarian is playing in Division 3 for her fourth No. 1 singles championship. Only two others – Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett’s Dawn Martin from 1985-88 and Detroit Country Day’s Kendra Howard from 1990-93 – have won No. 1 singles titles all four years of high school.

Najarian’s storyline will be one of many to follow this weekend, with coverage of all four Finals publishing on Second Half later Saturday evening. Below is a brief look at top contenders at each tournament, with play beginning Friday morning. Click for more including brackets and seeds for all 32 flights.

DIVISION 1 at Midland Tennis Center

Top ranked: 1. Grosse Pointe South, 2. Clarkston, 3. Northville.

Grosse Pointe South is favored to win its second MHSAA championship in three seasons after tying for third a year ago with Clarkston, which tied for second in 2012 and won the title in 2011. Northville is seeking its first MHSAA girls tennis championship and finished fifth last season.

Grosse Pointe South: All but one flight is seeded fifth or higher, with three doubles pairs seeded among the top two of their respective flights. And the unseeded is No. 2 singles player Madie Flournoy, last season’s champion at No. 4. Brooke Willard, a semifinalist at No. 2 singles last season, is the fourth seed at No. 3 this weekend, and 2013 No. 3 singles runner-up Maggie Sweeney is now part of the fifth-seeded No. 1 doubles pair with Samantha Perry. Raven Neely is a contender at No. 1 singles entering as the third seed.

Clarkston: The Wolves’ strength again is singles, with all four flights entering this weekend seeded first or second. Last season’s No. 1 singles runner-up Lexi Baylis is the top seed at that flight and won No. 2 in both 2011 and 2012. Reigning No. 2 runner-up Isabella Spindler and reigning No. 3 champion Dana Olsen are second seeds at those flights, respectively. Paige Olsen – part of last season’s runner-up at No. 1 doubles and the No. 3 singles champion in 2012 – is the second seed at No. 2 singles. Her partner last season, Alex Whall, is teaming with Katie Hubregsen as the fourth-seeded pair at No. 1 doubles.

Bloomfield Hills: Although ranked No. 4 entering the postseason, Bloomfield Hills looks like a contender and brings tournament experience with Andover taking fourth and Lahser tying for sixth in Division 2 in 2013 (those schools merged last summer). The Black Hawks are seeded at all but one flight, with Mollie Fox – last season’s Division 2 No. 1 singles champ – seeded fifth in the top flight. Kerry Hu – the No. 1 singles runner-up for Andover in Division 2 in 2012 – is the third-seeded player this weekend at No. 2. Meryl Reams was the Division 2 No. 4 champion last season and is seeded fifth in that flight.

Utica’s Davina Nguyen: The 2012 No. 1 singles champion fell in the semifinals last season but is expected to get at least that far again entering this weekend as the second seed.

Port Huron Northern’s Lizzie Brozovich: Despite beating Spindler in straight sets in last season’s No. 2 singles championship match, Brozovich returns as only the sixth seed in the flight this weekend.

Midland Dow’s Caroline Szabo: Dow has the top seeds at Nos. 2, 3 and 4 singles, with Szabo at No. 2 expected to finish her freshman season as a champion.

Port Huron Northern’s Alexis Wirth and Fran Basha: Northern’s top-seeded pair at No. 1 doubles gave up only one set – and then one game in the championship match – in winning this flight in 2013.

Other returning flight champions: Farmington Hills Mercy’s Mackenzie Zierau (No. 2 doubles in 2013, part of No. 1 doubles with Clara Pilchak this season), Ann Arbor Pioneer’s Alyssa Roopas and Evie Vandewege (No. 3 doubles in 2013 and No. 4 doubles in 2012; No. 1 doubles this season), Northville’s Libby Quinn (No. 4 doubles in 2013, part of third-seeded No. 4 doubles with Chloe Page this season).

DIVISION 2 at Holland

Top ranked: 1. Birmingham Seaholm, 2. Bloomfield Hills Marian, 3. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern.

One of these three has won Division 2 each of the last 11 seasons, with Marian the returning champ, Seaholm the winner in 2012 and Forest Hills Northern  finishing first in 2011. Seaholm was last season’s runner-up, with Forest Hills Northern finishing third.

Birmingham Seaholm: The Maples enter the weekend with five top seeds, including at three singles flights. All four singles players are back from last season – Labina Petrovska is the top seed at No. 1, Lauren Frazier is seeded second at No. 2, reigning runner-up Claire Markley is the top seed at No. 3 and Rachel Fenberg is the top seed at No. 4. The two doubles pairs that aren’t top seeds have championship experience – Jackie Meier is back at No. 1, this time with Laine Boitos, after Meier helped win No. 1 last season and Boitos was part of the runner-up at No. 2. Sam Lareau is playing No. 2 doubles with Caity Buechner after helping win the No. 4 doubles title in 2013.

Bloomfield Hills Marian: The Mustangs are seeded at all but No. 1 singles, and that unseeded player, Lauren Dietz, was the No. 2 singles runner-up a year ago. Reigning No. 3 champ Breann Lunghamer moved up to No. 2 and is the fourth seed, and reigning No. 4 runner-up Catherine Yaldoo moved up to No. 3 and is seeded third at that flight. All four doubles flights are seeded third or higher, with Tatyanna Dadabbo moving up to No. 1 to pair with Biance Emde after Dadabbo helped win the No. 2 doubles title a year ago and Emde was part of the pair that made the semis at No. 3.

Forest Hills Northern: All flights are seeded, with three in the top spot and another second. Victoria Minzlaff helped finish runner-up at No. 1 doubles last season and is part of the top-seeded pair this time with last season’s No. 2 singles player, Jessica Stevens. (Minzlaff was part of champions at No. 1 in 2012 and No. 4 in 2011.) Stephanie Nguyen, part of last season’s No. 3 doubles champion, is part of the top-seeded No. 2 pair with Hailey Jones. Madeline Bissett is the top seed at No. 2 singles after winning No. 3 in Division 3 as a freshman at Forest Hills Eastern two years ago (and finishing runner-up at No. 2 in Division 3 last season), and Claire Aleck is back at No. 1 singles and seeded second in that flight.

Fenton’s Madison Ballard: This season’s third seed at No. 1 singles won two matches at last season’s Final after entering unseeded.

Okemos’ Emily Struble: The champion at No. 2 singles the last two seasons is playing No. 1 this weekend and enters seeded fifth.  

East Grand Rapids’ Jeanie Weinrich and Bridget Barrett: The Pioneers’ third-seeded No. 1 doubles pair is made up of half of last season’s pair (Weinrich) and last season’s No. 1 singles player (Barrett).

DIVISION 3 at Kalamazoo College

Top ranked: 1. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood, 2. Detroit Country Day, 3. Allegan

Cranbrook-Kingswood is looking to extend a three-season winning streak and finish among the top two for the seventh straight year. The Cranes scored 39 points a year ago, with Allegan second at 23 and Country Day third at 19. Country Day, in 2010, was the last team to win before this run.

Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood: The Cranes have top seeds at six flights and the fourth seeds at the remaining two. Najarian’s history-making opportunity is detailed above, and No. 2 singles Anna Short also is a reigning champion. Briana Latica and Holly Meers were the No. 3 doubles champions last season and are playing this weekend at Nos. 2 and 3, respectively, and Lauren Lanzon and Emily Harvey won the No. 4 doubles title a year ago; Harvey is playing No. 3 singles and Lanzon No. 3 doubles. Meg Phyle was part of last season’s No. 1 doubles runner-up and is top-seeded at that flight with Amanda Simmons.

Detroit Country Day: Seven flights are seeded, led by a strong singles lineup. Madelyn Karoub is looking to finish her career with a third MHSAA singles title and is the top seed at No. 3. Haley Mullins was runner-up at No. 3 last season and is seeded second at No. 2, and Sarah Carroll was runner-up at No. 4 last season and is seeded second at that flight. 

Allegan: The Tigers also are seeded at seven flights, with all four singles players fourth seeds or higher and a pair of strong doubles teams leading the way. Emmarie Gorby and Blake Day are the fourth seed at No. 1 doubles after finishing runner-up at No. 2 a year ago. Carlie Vanklompenberg and Taylor Orr are the top seed at No. 2 doubles after finishing runner-up at No. 3 a year ago.

Holland Christian’s Lisa Busscher and Anna Bosgraaf: Last season’s No. 4 doubles runners-up are seeded third at No. 2 this weekend.

Williamston’s Sara Daavettila: Playing high school tennis for the first time, Daavettila is the second seed at No. 1 singles and could give Najarian an interesting run if both make the championship match.

Williamston’s Caitlyn Chick and Delaney Nikolai: Although unseeded at No. 1 doubles, this pair was the runner-up at No. 1 in Division 4 last season.

DIVISION 4 at Grand Blanc/Holly

Top ranked: 1. Grosse Ile, 2. Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, 3. Traverse City St. Francis

Grosse Ile, Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard and Traverse City St. Francis all are seeking their first MHSAA girls tennis championships. Grosse Ile finished just three points back of champion Bloomfield Hills Academy of the Sacred Heart last season, with St. Francis third and Gabriel Richard tied for fourth. Academy of the Sacred Heart, champion the last two seasons, is ranked No. 4.

Grosse Ile: The Red Devils are seeded at every flight with three top seeds and No. 4 doubles runners-up Rose Tucker and Casey Guthrie returning among favorites. Reigning No. 2 singles champion Brianne Riley is the sixth seed at No. 1, and reigning No. 3 runner-up Julia Formentin is the second seed at No. 2. Katherine Kuzmiak was part of the No. 2 doubles runner-up last season and is teaming with Luna Terauchi on the top-seeded pair at No. 3 this weekend.

Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard: The Fighting Irish are seeded at only four flights, but have the favorites at Nos. 1 and 2 singles, respectively, with top seeds Colleen O’Brien and Maddy Szuba. O’Brien was the No. 1 runner-up last season and the No. 2 champion in 2012 (playing for Greenhills), while Szuba made the semis at No. 3 last season.

Bloomfield Hills Academy of the Sacred Heart: The Gazelles appear in a slightly better position to earn points than Traverse City St. Francis with six seeds to St. Francis’ five and three among the top four seeds in their respective flights. Tate Lehmann is the third seed at No. 3 singles after winning No. 4 a year ago, while the team’s second-seeded pair at No. 1 doubles is a mix of Sarah Spangler from last season’s No. 2 champion and Gretchen Lemon from last season’s winner at No. 4. Kendall Lehmann is part of the fifth-seeded pair at No. 2 doubles, with Stella Betrus, after helping win the title at No. 3 in 2013.

Berrien Springs’ Arien Kissinger: The senior has won four matches at No. 1 singles as an unseeded player the last three seasons, but enters her last Finals as the second seed at this flight.

Kalamazoo Christian’s Audrey Bouma and Jessica Bouma: Last season’s champion at No.3 singles, Audrey, is the top seed in that flight, while Jessica is the third seed at No. 2 singles and won No. 3 in 2011.

Lansing Catholic’s Calla Ramont: The No. 3 singles champion in 2012 won a match at No. 1 last season and comes into this weekend as the third seed at the top flight.

Ludington’s Gabrielle and Stephanie Kelly: The sisters have teamed up at No. 1 doubles the last two seasons, winning a match at the 2013 Final and entering this one as the top seed.

PHOTO: Cranbrook-Kingswood’s Alexandria Najarian, here playing in the No. 1 singles championship match at the 2012 LP Division 3 Final, will play for her fourth No. 1 singles title. (Click to see more at HighSchoolsSportsScene.com.)

Lessons from Multi-Sport Experience Guide Person in Leading New Team

By Pam Shebest
Special for MHSAA.com

August 1, 2024

PARCHMENT — When Amanda Person was in sixth grade, her family hosted an international student from Japan.

Made In Michigan and Michigan Army National Guard logosUntil then, soccer was the main sport for her family – but that soon changed.

“Naoki wanted to play tennis,” Person said. “He started playing and then my sister (Marissa) started playing, and then I started playing.”

That passion for both sports only increased during her four years at Parchment High School.

“Soccer was really fun, but when I look back on my high school career, tennis was the most prominent thing I remember,” the 2008 grad said. “I think it’s because I played year-round: our regular tennis season and then our summer tennis program and winter tennis program.”

Although it has been 16 years since her glory days at Parchment ended, Person has no trouble recalling the best parts of her Panthers sports career.

In fact, coming up with memories from those days is no problem — she has a folder full of photos called “I Miss Team Sports” on her Facebook page.

Playing intramural soccer at Michigan State University, she graduated with a degree in social work, then stayed in the Big Ten. She is the campus tours and ambassador coordinator at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., where she supervises 80 to 100 student tour guides who provide information for families considering the school.

Her ties to the Spartans sometime makes for interesting conversations with her colleagues.

“They give me a hard time,” she said with a quick laugh. “I say Michigan State will always be my No. 1. That’s my alma mater I spent four years of time, tears and money at Michigan State. But I really love Purdue, so I’ll root for the Boilermakers second.”

She is also working on her master’s degree in higher education at Purdue.

Her office in the welcome center shares space with the alumni association, leading to an unforgettable experience.

During a lunch break, she went home to let out her dog, Tessa. When she returned, a trophy and a bucket were sitting on her desk.

A pair of beloved trophies sit temporarily on Person’s desk at Purdue.Confused, she asked what they were doing there.

“The tour guides I was working with said (during an event) they had to put them somewhere before putting them out (to the public), so they just put them on my desk,” she said.

Turns out, one trophy was the NCAA Final Four runner-up men’s basketball trophy the Boilermakers took home last year after losing to Connecticut in the championship game.

The other was the Old Oaken Bucket, the trophy that goes to the winner between Purdue and Indiana University’s annual football grudge match.

“I didn’t know anything about the Old Oaken Bucket,” she said. “They were like, what do you mean ‘what is this?’ Then they told me the story behind it.”

Creating core memories

Recalling her years at Parchment, Person becomes animated, smiling and laughing at all the memories.

“The first thing I remember is that my sister was really, really good at soccer,” she said. "I was always trying to keep up with her a bit.”

Her dad, Dave Person, noted that “all of our kids (Adam, Marissa, Amanda) had some success in sports during high school while realizing that it was secondary to their education.

“My only input was that I insisted they treat officials, coaches and opponents with respect, which they did. I always thought that while Marissa did very well in tennis, she was a natural at soccer. Amanda, on the other hand, was very good at soccer, but was a natural at tennis.” 

Amanda said her soccer memories come down to “we might not have won a lot, but it was still a lot of fun.”

She said while several on the team, including herself, had years of soccer experience, players also welcomed those who wanted to try the sport for the first time.

“Our team had a home for those people, too,” she said. “The games were always fun, but I feel like a lot of being on a team like that is the outside things you do together: the team dinners, the traveling on the bus, even practices.”

Her freshman year, the team advanced to the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 4 Girls Tennis Finals, finishing 19th.

Her senior year was a transition when several sports seasons were switched, putting girls soccer and tennis at the same time during the spring.

Person also was a soccer standout at Parchment.Person and the other three two-sport seniors juggled both.

“All of a sudden we were playing soccer and tennis in the spring,” she said. “Thankfully they let us do both, and our coaches were very good in terms (of) making sure nothing important overlapped.”

Person played doubles all four years and was at No. 1 with Kelly Drummond her final two seasons.

“If my memory serves me correctly, I believe we only lost two matches the whole (senior) year, so it was a good year for us,” she said.

It was a very good year.

She and Drummond won their Regional Final, but that ended her prep career since the team did not qualify for championship weekend.

Preparing for life

The best thing about high school tennis, she said, was that it was a combination team and individual sport.

“You can do really well individually and maybe the team doesn’t do well, or maybe the team does well and you don’t do well personally,” she said. “It has the aspect of wanting the entire team to do good.”

Competing in both sports prepared her for the “real” world, she said.

“Playing soccer and tennis and being part of a team helped me cheer other people on,” she said. “The world is a competitive place, so having that foundation of team sports is really good to teach a plethora of things you can use in the real world.

“Even at work, you have your individual job but you’re also part of a team. If one person isn’t doing well, then your whole team isn’t doing well. If someone else is having a hard time, helping them out is helping the team.”

She added that losing also teaches important lessons.

“You’re going to lose at things your entire life,” she said. “Being able to handle losing, handle rejection, is a good skill to have for anything in life. I’ve learned it’s not what happens to you but how you respond to it. That’s a huge lesson. There are a lot of life lessons you can get from playing team sports in high school.”

Her advice to high school athletes today: “Enjoy it, first of all. Don’t take it too seriously in wins and losses.

“When I look back, most of my core memories are being part of a team, having fun with the team, having fun playing the sport. Enjoy your time,” she said.

“Now I miss it.”

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PHOTOS (Top) At left, Parchment’s Amanda Person plays a 2008 tennis match with doubles partner Kelly Drummond; at right, Person and her dog Tessa. (Middle) A pair of beloved trophies sit temporarily on Person’s desk at Purdue. (Below) Person also was a soccer standout at Parchment. (Photos courtesy of Amanda Person.)