Dana Hills doubles team moves closer to CIF-SS record
SEAL BEACH - Brynn Boren and Kristina Smith are two sets from a historic run. On Thursday, the top-seeded pair from Dana Hills advanced to the doubles semifinals of the CIF-SS girls individual tennis championships at the Seal Beach Tennis Center.
With a victory Friday in the semifinals, Boren and Smith, the defending doubles champions, would become the first pair to play in three consecutive doubles championship matches. They beat Valencia's Natalie McKay and Candace Wu in the quarterfinals, 6-0, 6-2, on Thursday.
They face Jenna Glimp and Anna Tatsuno from Peninsula of Rolling Hills Estates in the semifinals at 11 a.m. on Friday.
“We are focusing on those two players,” Boren said of the Peninsula duo. “We just can't think about the finals. We have to focus on the first one.”
Awaiting Boren and Smith if they advance to the final is a likely showdown with second-seeded Sarah Lee and Sabrina Santamaria of Campbell Hall of North Hollywood. The two teams lost seven games combined Thursday.
“Oh yeah,” Dolphins coach Mark Spearman said of the anticipated match. “They've been talking about that around here. They (Lee and Sabrina) are a good team. Right now, we will be happy to get to the final, then we'll see. Brynn and Kristina are playing well.”
The round of 16 began with six county players in singles and 12 in doubles. Orange Lutheran's Kaitlyn Christian joins Boren and Smith as the only players to survive through the quarterfinals.
Christian, seeded third in singles, lost her first set in the round of 16 to El Modena's Krista Hardebeck in a tiebreaker. Christian had led, 5-1, in the set.
“I was struggling,” Christian said. “She figured out how to play me. I stayed positive and tried to just keep going.”
She responded in the next two sets and won, 6-7, 6-2, 6-4. Her quarterfinal match went smoother with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Della Taylor of Redondo Union.
The victory positioned Christian for a rematch with Lakewood's Stacey Tan in the semifinals. Last year, Tan beat Christian in the semifinals on her way to finishing as runner-up.
Tan beat Corona del Mar's Melissa Matsuoka and South Pasadena's Maravick Mamiit in straight sets. La Quinta's Pam Montez and Ontario Christian's Britney Sanders meet in the other semifinal. Sanders beat Joanna Smith of Dana Hills, 3-6, 6-2, 6-4, in the quarterfinals.
“I definitely want to get her back,” Christian said. “I haven't played her since she beat me last year. She hits really well. I need to mix my game up and give her different looks and get her off balance.”
Contact the writer: ctobolski@ocregister.com
