Sea Kings stave off Uni

CORONA DEL MAR — Not long into the final and deciding set in the Pacific Coast League girls’ tennis showdown between University and Corona del Mar high schools, players and coaches from both teams sat in formation on the center line of the adjoining court Thursday.

The regimented assembly of supporters was a fitting metaphor for the marathon singles duel between Sea Kings senior Melissa Matsuoka and Uni sophomore Kyra Scott, since everything was, in fact, on the line.

The match, a string of 10 straight league titles for CdM, and, conceivably, one of the top four seeds in the CIF Southern Section Division I playoffs were some of the stakes.

Matsuoka rallied from a 4-1 deficit to take a 6-5 lead and eventually won the set, 7-6, with a 7-5 verdict in the tiebreaker. Her victory, which closed out a three-set sweep in the No. 1 spot, knotted the score at 9-9. CdM was victorious, however, thanks to an 82-75 advantage in games.

The two teams will collide again Oct. 27 at University. And the winner of that match figures to be crowned PCL champion.

Matsuoka, who was defeated in a similarly dramatic scenario in the Sea Kings’ lone loss this season against Campbell Hall, was immediately mobbed by teammates, making her the centerpiece of a group hug that appeared to go about three layers deep.

“It’s a memorable match, because I had to come back and figure out a way to play her,” said Matsuoka, who helped the host Sea Kings (9-1, 3-0 in league), ranked No. 4, in Division I, earn their narrowest victory over the No. 5-ranked Trojans (8-2, 2-1) in Brian Ricker’s 10 seasons as coach.

“I’ve never lost a match to Uni and, I hate to say it, but we’ve never really had a close match,” said Ricker, whose team split Thursday’s first-round, 3-3, and entered the third round trailing, 7-5.

Seniors Kelli Feeley and Azadeh Nazemi swept, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2, at No. 1 doubles, to help CdM produce just enough. The Sea Kings’ No. 2 doubles team of junior Kalika Slevcove and sophomore Katelyn Nguyen won two of three sets, claiming 16 of 25 games.

Senior Hailey Hogan, playing at No. 2 singles, earned the other set victory for the hosts, a 6-0 triumph that helped them build the necessary advantage on games.

“[The Trojans] are coming fast,” Ricker said. “They’ve got five or six freshmen in the top 100 [of the Southern California age-group rankings], so they’re going to get better and better. I knew this was going to be closer than everybody else thought.”

Matsuoka was not close early against Scott, a first-time opponent who both she and Ricker praised for her strong performance.

“[Scott] played doubles for them last year,” Ricker said. “I have not seen a girl improve that much in one year. I was impressed with her game and her mental toughness.”

But Matsuoka earned equal praise for her clutch victory.

“She stepped it up,” Ricker said of Matsuoka’s decisive, come-from-behind win. “As our senior leader, she came through for us. Mental toughness is one of her best assets. She has a lot of talent, but she is very mentally tough.”

Matsuoka said focus, experience and a strategic shift helped key her comeback.

“[Scott] was playing so well, you can’t really do anything but keep fighting,” Matsuoka said. “I changed up my game and I started to get more balls back and take advantage of some opportunities. It worked for me.”

It also worked for the team, but Matsuoka said she was not flustered by the line of players and coaches perched on the next court.

“I’m not really aware of my surroundings,” Matsuoka said. “I focus on the match I’m playing and I just try my best. Playing [junior] tournaments and a lot of matches has made me improve and made me focus more on the match, instead of outside distractions.”