Thursday's District A-12 boys and girls tennis championships was a banner day for Cape Coral High School as a senior-laden boys team led by No. 1 singles champion Ian Ziegler and a deep girls squad led by No. 2 singles champion Ana Dieng lifted both Seahawks programs over the top at Three Oaks Park.
Ziegler, Corey Williamson and Max Slafer all capped their senior seasons with district titles, and freshman Matthew Orozco steamrolled through the competition at No. 2 singles and teamed with Ziegler to also bring home the title at No. 1 doubles for the Seahawks. Williamson and Slafer teamed at No. 2 doubles to take another victory for Cape Coral.
Coming into the day unbeaten on the season, Ziegler had to come back after losing the first set to Lely's Diego Alvarez before emerging with a 3-6, 6-2, 10-8 triumph. A year after being disqualified from the state tournament in the singles' draw after not making his match in time, Ziegler is ready to make amends and be in contention for a long state run with his teammates.
"I was making some mistakes and giving Diego some easy points early, but late in the first set and going into the second set, I felt I found my groove," Ziegler said.
"I had enough energy to pull this one out, it was a long day out there. It was satisfying needing to come back after that first set."
Seahawks boys head coach Martin Gijon was particularly impressed with the stamina from his entire roster, with four of his seven players needing to go four matches on the afternoon to sweep the day.
"The heat was crazy for the guys, having to go four matches for some of them, it was a task to make sure they were hydrated and stay out of the sun as much as possible," Gijon said.
"Things went our way today; the boys really came to play. We've been knocked out of regionals three years in a row, and we'd really like to go to state as a team this year."
Seawawks girls head coach A.J. Gurgal had to manage his expectations heading into the final day after virtually wrapping up the district title Wednesday with all seven matches seeing Cape Coral in the semifinals. Despite only getting victories Thursday from Dieng, Yevheniya Krasynska at No. 4 singles, and Krasynska and Bailey Klein taking the win at No. 2 doubles, Gurgal savored the first district title in 18 years for his group.
"We played well throughout the whole tournament, we've got a deep team, and that's how we've won all year," Gurgal said.
"It's been a long time for us as a team, and for us to do this together with the boys team is great. We're looking forward to next week to see how far we can take this."
Mariner's boys team took second place, with Brandon King's victory at No. 5 singles playing a vital part in the Tritons advancing to regional competition as they came in just ahead of a three-way tie for third between Bishop Verot, Cypress Lake and Lely.
Bishop Verot's girls program took second place, and it was in large part thanks to sophomore Marina Lombardo battling herself in the middle of her match at No. 1 singles against Cypress Lake's Rachel Weaver.
After taking the first set 7-5, Lombardo was blanked in the second set by Weaver before pulling herself together with the support of her teammates cheering her on from the sidelines to take the third set tiebreaker 10-6 to send the Vikings onto regional competition.
"I got so tired in that second set, twisted my ankle and was really getting frustrated out there," Lombardo said.
"I'm not the best mentally stable player, but I had my teammates cheering me on, and it really helped. You just got to keep fighting through it; I wanted to win really badly. It was so inspiring for me to have all my friends just cheering me on, and it really pushed me through to the end."
Kerry Dowdle also provided a big boost for the Vikings as she took the title at No. 5 singles with a 6-2, 7-6 victory over Cape Coral's Abigail Williamson.
Cypress Lake's Mackenzie Wolf was victorious at No. 3 singles for the Panthers as she defeated Klein, of Cape Coral, who had to retire trailing 5-2 in the first set. Weaver teamed with Bruna Barros to claim the title at No. 1 doubles as they defeated Lely's Elise Prodanov and Victoria Novotny in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4.
Regional competition will take place for all advancing teams and individuals April 26.
Boys
Final standings
Cape Coral 27, Mariner 13, Lely 11, Cypress Lake 11, Bishop Verot 11, Oasis 6, LaBelle 5, Dunbar 1, Immokalee 1, Island Coast 0, Gateway Charter 0
Final results
Singles: 1. Ian Ziegler (CC) d. Diego Alvarez (Lely) 3-6, 6-2, 10-8; 2. Matthew Orozco (CC) d. Jannie Hahlbohm (CL) 6-3, 6-2; 3. Corey Williamson (CC) d. Jose Flores (CL) 6-4, 6-2; 4. Max Slafer (CC) d. Brian Voorhees (BV) 6-4, 2-6, 10-6; 5. Brandon King (M) d. Jacob Robertson (CC) 6-3, 7-5; Doubles: 1. Ziegler/Orozco (CC) d. Hahlbohm/Jose Camacho (CL) 6-3, 6-3; 2. Williamson/Slafer (CC) d. Teddy Perchall/Yeni Win (M) 7-5, 1-6, 10-5
Girls
Final standings
Cape Coral 22, Bishop Verot 17, Cypress Lake 15, Lely 14, Mariner 7, Oasis 5, LaBelle 5, Gateway Charter 2 Dunbar 1, Island Coast 1, Immokalee 0
Final results
Singles: 1. Marina Lombardo (BV) d. Rachel Weaver (CL) 7-5, 0-6, 10-6; Ana Dieng (CC) d. Bruna Barros (CL) 6-2, 6-0; 3. Mackenzie Wolf (CL) d. Bailey Klein (CC) 5-2, ret.; 4. Yevheniya Krasynska (CC) d. Victoria Alvarez (Lely) 6-2, 6-0; 5. Kerry Dowdle (BV) d. Abigail Williamson (CC) 6-2, 7-6; Doubles: Weaver/Barros (CL) d. Prodanov/Novotny (Lely) 6-3, 6-4; 2. Klein/Krasynska (CC) d. Gabrielle Magnant/Tedesco (BV) 7-5, 2-6, 12-10