Sweet revenge: TJ tennis upends Kentridge Wednesday

It only took 24 hours, but the Thomas Jefferson Raiders’ girls tennis team got its revenge.

The Raiders defeated Kentridge Wednesday afternoon, 3-2, just a day after losing to the Chargers on Tuesday, 3-2.

“This was a huge win for TJ,” said head coach Andrew Buchan.

The victory moved TJ to 4-2 in the South Puget Sound League North Division and the loss was Kentridge’s first in 18 matches. The Chargers won the league title last year with a perfect 14-0 record and were 4-0 entering Wednesday’s match.

With the team score tied at 2-2, Jefferson No. 2 singles player Mackenzie Qualls won the deciding match over Kentridge’s Jazmin AhYat in three sets. AhYat took the first set in a tiebreaker, but Qualls came back to win the final two sets, 6-4, 6-2.

But the match of the day came at No. 3 doubles. TJ freshmen Krista Nakamura and Breanna Ziccarelli mounted a huge comeback in the final two sets to beat Shereya Shirude and Beth VandenJuevel, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3. After losing the first set, Nakamura and Ziccarelli trailed 4-1 in the second before winning 11 of the next 14 games to pick up the victory.

The Raiders also got wins from Carline Min and Julia Suico at No. 2 doubles in another three-setter, 1-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-5).

On Tuesday, Kentridge won both singles matches and the No. 2 doubles match to walk away with the 3-2 win.

Kentwood sits atop the SPSL North with a perfect 6-0 record. The Conquerors got by the Raiders Thursday afternoon, 3-2.

Decatur moved to 4-1 in the SPSL South Wednesday with a 3-2 win over Curtis. The Gators picked up a big win from Sara Lin at No. 1 singles, 6-3, 7-5.

Beamer moved to 3-3 in the South with a 4-1 win over Emerald Ridge Tuesday. The Titans got wins from Sara Miller at No. 1 singles, 6-3, 6-4, and Melissa Canfield and Jessica Sutcliff at No. 1 doubles, 6-1, 6-0.

Federal Way won all three doubles matches Wednesday to beat Kent-Meridian, 3-2. The win improved the Eagles to 2-4 in the North Division.

Contact Federal Way Mirror Sports editor Casey Olson at sports@fedwaymirror.com or (253) 925-5565 ext. 5056.

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