Preview and predictions of Saturday's RIIL Girls Tennis championships
Saturday at Slater Park is a magical time and that won’t change this weekend for the RIIL Girls Tennis Championship finals.
What can you expect this season? There’s more than a few storylines with some programs making history just by getting to the match and others looking to make some with a win.
Here’s a look at everything you’ll need to know about the matches, including predictions on who will be taking a bus ride home with some shiny new hardware.
TIME: 11 a.m.
THIS SEASON: La Salle 12-0, North Kingstown 11-1
HEAD TO HEAD: La Salle won more than a few tight matches to beat North Kingstown, 7-0, on October 3.
HOW THEY GOT HERE: In the quarterfinals, La Salle beat No. 8 Smithfield, 4-0, while North Kingstown beat No. 5 Mt. Hope, 4-0. In the semifinals, the Rams beat No. 4 Moses Brown, 4-1, while the Skippers beat No. 3 Barrington 4-2.
TOTAL TITLES: La Salle 14 (13 State, 1 Division II), North Kingstown 1 (Division II)
LAST TITLE MATCH: La Salle beat East Greenwich, 4-0, in the 2022 State Championship match. North Kingstown lost to East Greenwich, 5-2, in the 2005 Division II match.
LAST TITLE MATCH WIN: La Salle beat East Greenwich, 4-0, to win the 2022 State Championship; North Kingstown beat Barrington, 5-2, to win the 1992 Division II Championship.
COACHES: La Salle – Tom Martin; North Kingstown – Tim O’Neill.
PROBABLE SINGLES MATCHES: Bridget Casey, LSA, vs. Audrey Paxton, NK; Arianna DeThomas, LSA, vs. Kate Maloney, NK; Abigail Oxley, LSA, vs. Maddi Cameron, NK; Ana Lamoriello, LSA, vs. Bonnie O’Flahery, NK.
PROBABLE DOUBLES MATCHES: Eliza Barker/Alisha Chowdhry, LSA, vs. Rudy Bigda/Candace Zangari, NK; Samantha Holoubek/Emily Roye, LSA, vs. Hannah Fries/Addison Ralphs, NK; Genevieve Raposo/Megha Sud, LSA, vs. Bridget McPhillips/Olivia Soucy, NK.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR: The last time the two teams met, the match was much closer than the 7-0 score indicated. If La Salle comes in and plays anywhere near what it’s capable of, the final score won’t vary much. But if the Rams take their foot off the gas for one second, the Skippers could easily flip the two three setters they lost at No. 3 singles and No. 3 doubles as well as the tight matches at No. 4 singles and No. 2 doubles to get an upset nobody would see coming.
RUEB’S PICK: La Salle
TIME: 1:30 p.m.
THIS SEASON: South Kingstown 13-0, Chariho 11-2
HEAD TO HEAD: South Kingstown went on the road and beat Chariho, 4-3, on Oct. 6
HOW THEY GOT HERE: In the quarterfinals, South Kingstown beat No. 9 North Smithfield, 4-0, while Chariho beat No. 6 Ponaganset, 4-0. In the semifinals, the Rebels beat No. 4 Westerly, 4-1, while the Chargers beat No. 2 Narragansett, 4-3.
TOTAL TITLES: South Kingstown 1 (Division II), Chariho 0
LAST TITLE MATCH: South Kingstown lost to Ponaganset, 4-2, in the 2022 Division II Championship match. Chariho lost to North Smithfield, 4-0, in the 2015 Division III Championship match.
LAST TITLE MATCH WIN: South Kngstown beat Prout, 7-0, to win the 2002 Division II Championship. Chariho has never won a girls tennis title.
COACHES: South Kingstown – Ron Matteson. Chariho – Gina Picard
PROBABLE SINGLES MATCHES: Alexa Clark, SK, vs. Emily Ballard, CH; Zoe Pollack, SK, vs. Megan Ballard, CH; Tess O’Sullivan, SK, vs. Sadie Grissom, CH; Bonnie Moore, SK, vs. Faith Owren, CH.
PROBABLE DOUBLES MATCHES: Alexa Rollins/Tess Ruhren, SK, vs. Allison Cole/Sara Johnson, CH; Josie Kolbe/Marin Roman, SK, vs. Kaitlyn Daniels/Lily Jackson, CH; Ella Bousquet/Aster Russel, SK, vs. Olivia Gray/Molly Owren, CH.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR: With Alexa Clark in the lineup, South Kingstown will head to Slater Park knowing it has a 1-0 lead, but it had that same advantage last year and left with a 4-1 loss. If the Rebels want to win, they may need the rest of the singles lineup to take two more points. SK has more depth than it did last season and the doubles lineup could ultimately decide everything on Saturday. Chariho knows it needs four from the six matches left, but the back end of its singles and doubles lineups can certainly get the job done. The Chargers have never won a girls title, but there’s no reason they can’t play the song when this thing is over.
RUEB’S PICK: South Kingstown
TIME: 4 p.m.
THIS SEASON: East Providence 14-0, Providence Country Day 11-2
HEAD TO HEAD: East Providence defended its home court and took down Providence Country Day, 5-2, on Sept. 19.
HOW THEY GOT HERE: In the quarterfinals, East Providence beat No. 8 Toll Gate, 4-0, while Providence Country Day beat No. 6 Coventry, 4-0. In the semifinals, the Townies beat No. 4 Cranston East, 4-3, while the Knights beat No. 2 Scituate, 4-1.
TOTAL TITLES: East Providence 2 (2 Division III), Providence Country Day 2 (Division IV)
LAST TITLE MATCH: East Providence lost to Bay View, 4-3, in the 2022 Division III Championship match. Providence Country Day beat Coventry, 4-1, in the 2009 Division IV Championship match.
LAST TITLE MATCH WIN: East Providence beat Classical, 4-3, to win the 2016 Division III Championship. Providence Country Day beat Coventry, 4-1, to win the 2009 Division IV Championship.
COACHES: East Providence – Slade Sharma. Providence Country Day – Mike Silva
PROBABLE SINGLES MATCHES: Hope Moran, EP, vs. Emma DiPardo, PCD; Lena Shanty, EP, vs. Clare Xiu, PCD; Caroline Haggerty, EP, vs. Marguerite Cuzzone, PCD; Isabella Hurley, EP vs. Iris Petrillo, PCD.
PROBABLE DOUBLES MATCHES: Madison Luu/Tianna Brierly, EP, vs. Mays Miller/Eloise Wetherby, PCD; Maggie Robinson/Rylee Thurber, EP, vs. Allison Bromberg/ Si’awanda Rezendes, PCD; Ava Domingues/Isabelle Periquito, EP, vs. Hannah Eno/Nora Calhoun, PCD.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR: When it comes to wakeup calls, East Providence’s semifinal win may have done the trick. The Townies have managed to pull out wins all season, but their victory over PCD was eons ago. If East Providence wants to win the title, it’s going to take a total team effort and maybe a few three-setters to grind out the four points. PCD rolls up confident. The Knights know All-Stater Emma DiPardo is good for a dub at No. 1 and the 5-2 loss to EP in their season opener doesn’t mean a thing. PCD got its revenge on Scituate in the semifinals and surely the Knights wouldn’t mind closing the season with a win over the team that beat them on Day 1.
PREDICTION: Providence Country Day
