Dos Pueblos' Lauren Stratman won her three sets in singles, but was challenged 6-4 in one set by Aurora Garrison.
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As CIF Division 2 top-ranked Santa Barbara was busy wrapping up its 31st straight Channel League girls tennis title on Wednesday with a 12-6 win over visiting Dos Pueblos, there was some commotion going on at the No. 1 singles court.
In a second-round set, Aurora Garrison of the Dons was battling three-time league champion and undefeated Lauren Stratman stroke for stroke in an intense duel between seniors. Garrison handled Stratman’s booming serve and blistering forehands, and mixed up her shots to take a 2-1 lead.
Stratman dug deep, painting the sidelines with her powerful ground strokes and using some timely drop shots, broke Garrison and held serve for a seemingly comfortable 4-2 advantage. But Garrison would not buckle. She continued to play aggressive and won two of the next three games to make it 5-4.
Stratman regrouped in the next game and opened up a 40-15 advantage before closing out the set with a deep shot in the corner for a hard-earned 6-4 victory.
Stratman accounted for three of DP’s wins, but the match against Aurora Garrison might have sent a message that winning a fourth straight league singles title won’t be easy for the Columbia University-bound Charger ace.
Aurora Garrison came back to win her next set 6-0.
Santa Barbara High's Aurora Garrison
Dons freshman Mattea Kilstofte also pushed Stratman before falling 6-3 in the third round. Kilstofte won her two earlier sets 6-0, 6-0
Freshman Summer Garrison rebounded from a 6-0 loss to Lauren Stratman and beat Kate Stratman 6-1.
The deeply talented Dons were dominant in the doubles. No. 3 team Taryn Mjelde and Marianna Alevra swept their three sets 6-0 and the No. 1 duo of Megan Grant-Madison Hale went 2-0 with 6-0, 6-1 wins.
DP’s Allie Frankel-Mikaela Amble gave Lisa Santry-Karina Thornton a battle before falling 6-4.
Santa Barbara got a forfeit win from Ventura and finishes league play at 8-0. The Dons (13-4) will face some of the best teams in the country this weekend when they travel to Dana Hills for the Coastal Championships. They open against the state champion from North Carolina.
Dos Pueblos (10-5) finishes Channel League play in second place at 6-2.
Santa Barbara 12, Dos Pueblos 6
Singles—SB:
Summer Garrison 1-1
Aurora Garrison 1-1
Mattea Kilstofte 2-1
Maddie Cuttler 0-1
Emily Baum 0-1
Singles—DP:
Lauren Stratman 3-0
Lea Tran Le 0-1
Kate Stratman 1-2
Chloe Warriner 1-1
Doubles—SB:
Megan Grant/Madison Hale 2-0
Lisa Santry/Karina Thornton 1-0
Taryn Mjelde/Marianna Alevra 3-0
Karina Thornton/Hailey DeBoer 1-0
Lauren Feuer/Kelli Martindale 0-1
Kaitlyn Rodnick/Lexie Gulden 1-0
Doubles—Dos Pueblos;
Kee Kee Daniels/Sophia Rasmussen 0-3
Ali Frankel/Mikaela Amble 0-2
Katie O’Brien/Rachel Amspoker 0-3
Emma Rennick/Mikaela Amble 1-0
Karina Thornton, pictured, teamed with Lisa Santry to win a first round match in doubles for the Dons.
