GATES MILLS—The Orange Lions punched their ticket to the state final four with a decisive 4-1 win over host Hawken in the Ohio Tennis Coaches’ Association Division II regional championship on Wednesday.
With the victory, the No. 3-seeded Lions advanced to the state semifinals, which will be held in conjunction with the OHSAA state tournament later this month. Orange earned its spot in the regional final by defeating second-seeded Hathaway Brown in the semifinals, while No. 4-seeded Hawken reached the title match after upsetting top-seeded Gilmour Academy.
Orange wasted little time asserting control in the championship. The Lions swept all three singles courts, building an insurmountable lead behind dominant performances from their top players.
At first singles, Genevieve Hayden battled through a tight opening set before pulling away for a 6-3, 6-0 win over Hawken’s Dani Forte.
“It was a real tight first set at first singles between Hayden and Dani Forte, two of the best players in our conference,” said Orange head coach Rich Bole. “It was 6-3 for Hayden, and then she blanked her in the second set, so that was a great effort by her.”
Melanie Statsevych followed with a convincing 6-0, 6-1 victory at second singles over Rhianna Siscu, and Zoe Roe sealed the singles sweep with a 6-0, 6-1 win at third singles against Caroline Naik.
In doubles play, Ivy Berlin and Lily Guiler delivered one of the Lions’ strongest performances of the day, posting a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Anya Simpfendorfer and Raina Sethi at second doubles.
“I thought Hayden played really well. Anytime you can get a score line like that against Forte is a huge win for us,” Bole said. “I thought our No. 2 doubles team was real strong today. Berlin and Guiler played a great match.”
Hawken earned its lone point at first doubles, where Valeria Kislyansky and Emery Grossman edged Adele Tokmazeysky and Raina Patel in a thrilling 7-6, 4-6, 1-0 (tiebreak) battle.
“They had kind of their next best players on the doubles court, and they won at first doubles in a third-set tiebreaker,” Bole said. “It was a great match.”
For Bole and his team, the regional title marked a breakthrough moment years in the making.
“It’s so exciting,” Bole said. “We had it in our grasp three years ago, and five years ago, and it kind of slipped through our hands a little bit, and then this year, we finally got the job done. I’m really proud of the girls and the program.”
With the regional championship secured, the Lions will now turn their attention to the state final four—and the chance to compete for a state team title.
