Girls Tennis: Catalina Foothills up on Ironwood Ridge 4-2
by Andy Morales on Feb. 28, 2013, under Sports
Kirtana Bhat. Andy Morales Photos.
Catalina Foothills defeated Ironwood Ridge twice in the regular season last year by the same score of 5-4 but then came the Division II state championship and the Nighthawks came out on top 5-4.
The difference proved to be the play of Ironwood Ridge standout Sara Brown. Brown had lost to Zaina Sufi twice before coming out on top in the state team final. Former All-Southern Arizona player Sufi won the state singles title and is now playing for DePaul.
Brown won a doubles title with standout Marissa Baca when they were both freshmen but Brown took her sophomore year off before returning to help Ironwood Ridge win a state championship as a junior.
Baca was paired with childhood friend Katrina Domingo as the top seed in doubles last year but Foothills sisters Rachana and Kirtana Bhat took the championship. Like Brown before her, Domingo has decided to take her senior off and is not on the Ironwood Ridge roster this year. Junior standout Noelle Karp is injured and is not available to play for Foothills this year.
With the sun fading, Catalina Foothills took a 4-2 lead over Ironwood Ridge Thursday night after singles play. No makeup date has been scheduled for the three doubles matches as of yet but the Falcons need to win just one.
Rachana Bhat defeated Brown 6-3; 6-2 in the top spot with her sister Kirtana defeating Baca in a lengthy and hard-fought battle 6-3; 5-7; (10-6).
Baca is a Northern Colorado commit, Brown is headed to Boise State and Rachana Bhat will be playing for New Mexico next year.
Sara Brown’s cousin Kelsey Brown defeated Katie Watson 6-4; 2-6 (10-7) in the third spot and Alison Knox defeated Caroline Leidy 6-3; 6-4 for Ironwood Ridge’s other win.
Anouk McCombs defeated Erica Harris in another tight match 2-6; 6-4 (11-9). As you can see, the three close matches will make the doubles competition interesting.
