The girls’ tennis team, the only remaining undefeated team in League VI, welcomed Comsewogue (1-3) to the home courts this afternoon. The Brook’s top three singles players prevailed along with all three doubles teams to seal their fourth win, 6-1.

1st Singles

Tylah Gantt battled her inconsistent serve as much as her opponent early in the match. She broke her foe in the opening game by way of her thundering forehand, but struggled in her first service game. She double-faulted twice, falling behind 15-30, but seemed to right the ship when she served up an ace to win the game and go up 2-0. In the third game, she came back from a 15-40 deficit to tie it, but failed to break her opponent. In game four, she cruised to a win, but dropped the fifth game and held a 3-2 lead as she prepared to serve. She seemed unhappy with the way she was serving, even calling over Coach Franny Pistell at one point for help, but she did not bow under the adversity. In the sixth game, she continued to struggle with getting her first serve in, but when she did it was barely returnable. A bevy of glances off the racket handle and lobs that threatened to clear the back fence were all Gantt’s adversary could muster when Tylah was able to rein in her rocket. She held serve to go up 4-2, then broke her Warrior opponent for the second time with two return winners that painted the line. With a commanding 5-2 lead Gantt closed the door on the first set, winning, 6-2.

She continued her momentum as the second set began, breaking her opponent without yielding a point. From there she was much more consistent in her service games and won the match with dominating a 6-0 second set. “My serve was shaky, but I recovered,” commented Gantt, who was very impressive to watch. When receiving serves she was exceedingly agile, often putting her opponent back on her heels with her return. When serving, her cannon was nearly impossible to return. What makes her a special player; however, is her combination of power and finesse. She has a vast array of shots at her disposal and no matter where the ball is given to her, she is adept at getting her body balanced and in position to fire it back. Watching her rifle the ball down both alleys was a pleasure to watch today.

2nd Singles

Michelle Avrutin was in control of her match from the beginning. While she stayed centered on the court for many of her games, her opponent was bouncing between the lines, trying to track down Avrutin’s shots. She won handily 6-2, 6-2.

3rd Singles

Nicole Antieri was very consistent with her serve and steady with her returns, forcing her opponent into a variety of errors. She dropped only one game, winning 6-0, 6-1 to give the Brook a formidable 3-0 lead in the match.

Doubles

The top two doubles teams each went the distance, requiring three sets to finish off the Warriors. The 1st doubles team of Julie Lee and Ariel Huang won by a very even score of 6-2, 1-6, 7-6, giving the Brook the win by grabbing the tiebreaker. Alissa Antieri and Carlyn Augustine took the 2nd doubles match, 6-2, 6-7, 6-2.

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