Corley sisters, Hootman brothers aim for titles

Tourney begins this afternoon

The Corleys of Eldorado High School are looking to repeat as Class 6A state champions, just not in the same draws they were in last year. And what’s more, they aren’t even the only prominent siblings from Eldorado. Meanwhile, the shy and unstoppable Hootman brothers from Albuquerque Academy can make it a four-peat this year.

The New Mexico state tennis championships begin this afternoon at multiple locations in Albuquerque with individual singles and doubles.

The team events run Friday and Saturday.

Eldorado cleaned up last year, with Michael Mounho and Carmen Corley winning individual singles titles. Mounho is back to defend, and is seeded No. 2 this week. Carmen Corley is playing doubles only.

Her older sister, Ivana, a two-time state singles champion for the burnt orange (and signed with Oklahoma) who didn’t play singles at state a year ago but won state in doubles, is the overwhelming favorite and No. 1 seed in this, her senior year. Manzano’s Giulia Bentivegna and Albuquerque High’s Maddie Chavez are seeded Nos. 2 and 3.

Emily Nguyen of Farmington is the top seed in 5A and the defending champion. Robertson’s Brandelyn Fulgenzi is the No. 1 seed in 1A-4A, and other Fulgenzi family members are part of top-seeded doubles teams.

Albuquerque has the No. 1 seeds in all three boys singles draws, with Hope Christian’s Adomas Skauda, Academy’s Abraham Yohannes and Eldorado freshman Georgio Samaha.

Yohannes was the state runner-up last year in 5A; Samaha and his brother Elias, a sophomore and the No. 4 seed, are both in the top half of the draw and seeded to meet in Thursday morning’s semifinals. Elias Samaha was the state runner-up to Mounho a year ago in Class 6A.

Neil Katzman of Bosque School, the 2017 singles champion, is seeded third this week in 1A-4A.

The singles finals will be held at the Jerry Cline complex on Thursday, all at 4 p.m.

Hunter and Coleton Hootman of Academy, now juniors, have been unbeatable to everyone outside Academy since they started playing varsity tennis as eighth-graders.

Carmen Corley and Allison Romero are seeded No. 1 in 6A girls doubles.

The six doubles finals are scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Thursday, also at Jerry Cline.