UKIAH — The Middletown Mustangs finished second to the Kelseyville Knights in the Coastal Mountain Conference regular-season standings this season, but the CMC Championships were a different story on Friday and Saturday at Mendocino College in Ukiah.
Middletown, led by its girls” doubles team of Nika Gibbs and Maddie Kucer, won the team title with 13 points to Kelseyville”s 11. Summerfield/Waldorf of Santa Rosa came in third with 10 points and Rincon Valley Christian, also of Santa Rosa, was fourth with nine. By winning the tournament, the Mustangs qualify to send a team to the upcoming North Coast Section Boys” Tennis Championships. Gibbs and Kucer also qualify for next fall”s NCS Girls” Championships.
Even with Middle-town”s win at the CMC Championships, the Kelseyville Knights take the CMC”s overall championship this season. They are 7-0 in dual competition with one match remaining, that today at home against Cloverdale. Middletown went 6-2 in the regular season, its two losses to Kelseyville.
Girls” doubles
Gibbs and Kucer, who won the title a year ago as sophomores, repeated as juniors after beating twin sisters Alondra and Esmeralda Espinosa of Anderson Valley 6-4, 6-2 in the championship match. They advanced to the finals with a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Kelseyville”s Ashley Taylor and Abby McQueen in the semifinals.
“Her and Nika have been friends forever,” Middletown coach Marc Morita said. “They were more in tune with each other during the championship match than the twin sisters they were playing.”
While Gibbs and Kucer finished strong, the start of the season was another story, according to Morita.
“Maddie really struggled in the beginning of the year due to injury and illness,” Morita said. “Once she was able to get by that she did great. They”re phenomenal together.”
Boys” doubles
Middletown”s boys” doubles team of Cody Astley and Jeremy Turner also reached the finals before losing 7-5, 6-4 to Josh and Jake Papanicolas of Rincon Valley Christian. Like teammates Gibbs and Kucer in girls” doubles, Middletown”s Astley and Turner also reached the finals via a semifinal win over Kelseyville opponents, in this case Kyle Schmidt and Max Lehman in a 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 battle.
Astley and Turner also had to eliminate two of their teammates en route to the finals as they beat Gerry Espinoza and Oscar Rincon 6-4, 7-5 in a hard-fought and emotional quarterfinal-round match. Ashley-Turner trailed 5-3 in the second set before rallying for the win.
“Three of them are seniors (Turner is a junior), so it was going to be someone”s last high school match,” Morita said. “I watched and cheered.”
Boys” singles
Moses Kuzu of Kelseyville fell 6-2, 6-2 to No. 1 seed Noah Lee of Summerfield/Waldorf in the boys” singles championship match, which was a rematch of the 2011 finals also won by Lee (6-4, 6-1). Lee also beat Kuzu in the 2010 semifinals.
“Noah Lee … that guy is physical,” Kelseyville coach Jeff McLaren said. “Moses battled him the best he could.”
Girls” singles
Freshman Claire Vargas of Kelseyville beat Gabby McDonald of Anderson Valley 8-3 (pro set) in the first round of girls” singles action before losing a three-set battle to Cayetana Aumente Echevarria of St. Vincent in the quarterfinals. Aumente Echevarria rallied for a 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 victory.
“Claire did great,” McLaren said. “She almost got into the semis.”
McLaren acknowledged the hard work of tournament director Maureen McKenzie, the former Rincon Valley Christian coach, in making the tournament run as smoothly as it did.
“Friday is a long day for everyone but the tournament went great,” McLaren said. “She did a great job.”
Morita said it was gratifying to see his squad save its best tennis for last.
“All of my players stepped up at the tourney,” he said. “That”s the best tennis they”ve played all season. We”re excited about how they did. It”s awesome.”
