’Stoga falls to powerful Harriton

Rams roll in finals duel of Central League foes

Following Conestoga’s 5-0 loss to top seed Harriton in the District 1 Class 3A team final Thursday, Pioneer head coach Brittany Aimone reflected on her team’s strong campaign this fall.

“One thing that I’ve emphasized this season is that we’re all family and that we’re all one unit,” said Aimone. “Our girls really implemented that this season, and it’s awesome to see these girls so together and being there for one another. I think that’s what led to their success this season.

“Cassidy [Landau] at first singles has been super solid for us this season; she’s like a backboard, hitting everything back; Ananya {Krishnan], a freshman, has really been solid at third singles. And we’ve had some other freshmen that have stepped in this season, like Leena Kwak at first doubles and Felicia Manful at third doubles. These young players have set the tone for what it’s going to be like for us next season.”

Like Harriton, Conestoga, the second seed in the District 1 AAA team tournament, will be headed to States, with a firstround matchup scheduled for Tuesday. Both teams advanced to the PIAA Class AAA state tournament in 2017, with Harriton reaching the finals.

Landau said, “I’m excited to be going back to [team] States again. It’s a lot of fun staying in the hotel with the team, all that team bonding, we usually go out to dinner, and to Chocolate World, and there’s the tennis too [laughs].”

Aimone paid tribute to former Pioneer coach Fran Tomaselli, who coached the squad for several decades before stepping down at the end of last season.

“Fran left a dynasty that I stepped into, and I think she set it up very well for me,” said Aimone. “We’ve implemented a lot of what she’s done in the past. Fran’s been out to a lot of our matches, and she’s supporting us still.”

Thursday, Conestoga was facing a seasoned juggernaut in Harriton.

“The great thing about this team is that it’s been together for at least three years, the partnerships are there, and some of these girls have been playing tennis since they have been 4 or 5 years old,” said Harriton head coach Kathi Rees. “They’re a great group of girls, on and off the court, they work hard and they’re going to do great [the rest of] this season.”

Harriton (16-0) was considered a pre-season favorite to reach the PIAA Class AAA state final again. But Rees says the Rams have handled the pressure very well this season.

“They all play in tournaments [outside Harriton], and they all play a lot of tennis, so [every PIAA match] is just like another match to them,” said Rees. “They’re very focused on each match, and they’ve handled the pressure really well.”

Thursday afternoon at PlymouthWhitemarsh High School, the top seeded Rams swept talented No. 2 seed Conestoga (14-2) in the championship finals. Four of the matches were won in straight sets.

At first singles, senior Sophia Sassoli defeated talented senior Cassidy Landau (12-3), 6-0, 6-0.

“It was super windy out here today, so I tried to be really solid, because Cassidy is a really consistent player,” said Sassoli, who has committed to Georgia Tech. “I made a lot of first serves, and I tried to come in a lot, and not let the ball get too high so the wind couldn’t take control of it.”

Five days earlier, Sassoli teamed with sophomore Saige Roshkoff, the Rams’ No. 2 singles player, to capture the Central League doubles championship.

“Saige and I had a lot of fun that day, we were setting each other up well,” said Sassoli.

Roshkoff said, “We were trying to be aggressive at the net.”

Thursday, Roshkoff won by a 6-2, 6-1 count at second singles against Priya Aravindhan (7-2).

“It was tough today because of the wind, but I tried to stay patient and use the wind to my advantage,” said Roshkoff.

At third singles, senior Nina Hoog prevailed in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1, against freshman Ananya Krishman (10-2). Hoog’s victory clinched the District 1 title for the Rams; interestingly, she also had the clinching victory that earned Harriton the Central League title earlier this season.

“It’s great to win [the clinching match],” said a smiling Hoog, who has committed to Case Western. “Knowing we already had two wins today, and that mine could be the third, it does put a bit of pressure [on me], but it feels really good to know that once you’ve won your match, the whole round is over.

“The windy conditions today were a bit hard to get used to. A lot of balls that I’m sure both of us [Hoog and Krishnan] usually don’t miss indoors were missed. The wind pushes some balls out [of bounds], and then some other balls that you expect to go out curve back in. It takes some getting used to, but once you figure out how to cooperate with [the wind], it gets a lot easier.”

Hoog and her Harriton teammates are looking forward to going back to States.

“I remember the support from everyone last year [at States], everyone gets so loud,” said Hoog. “A lot of people who aren’t directly involved with the team, like parents, previous [Harriton] players, they come out to see us play, and that’s one of my favorite things about States.”

In the first doubles match Thursday, the Conestoga duo of Olivia Dodge and Leena Kwak (12-1) extended the match against Harriton’s Connie Richards and Mackenzie Sherman to three sets before the Ram pair won, 6-3, 2-6, 10-4.

At second doubles, Harriton seniors Lauren Binnion and Roshni Parikh defeated Conestoga’s Kate Wieser and Sophia Mazza (12-3) in straight sets, 6-2, 7-5.