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Mason’s Luke Tsai and Miguel Cepeda were state champions in doubles last year. Tsai defeated Cepeda in the sectional finals Saturday. Enquirer file

Mark Schmetzer reports:

Alex Taylor didn’t derive any extra incentive from going unseeded into the Division I Mason boys’ sectional tournament.

He just played like it.

The Sycamore freshman upset fourth-seeded Nick Lang in the second round on the way to reaching the semifinals and earning an automatic berth in next Thursday’s and Saturday’s district tournament at Centerville High School.

“I knew I could get to this point,” Taylor said Saturday morning, after losing to top-seeded Luke Tsai, 6-3, 7-5, in a semifinal at Riverside Athletic Club in Hamilton. “I knew I had the ability to beat Lang.”

The top four singles players and doubles teams in each of four sectional tournaments qualified for district tournament. Saturday’s matches determined the seeding for the district draw.

The second Mason semifinal matched Comet seniors Jeremy Schneider and Miguel Cepeda, and the second-seeded Cepeda prevailed over the third-seeded Schneider, 6-4, 7-6, setting up a finals matchup between the players who formed last season’s Division I state doubles championship team won by Tsai, 6-0, 6-2.

The sectional champion admitted it was difficult to play a teammate, but he needed a strong match to sharpen his game for the district tournament.

“This match was really good for my confidence,” Tsai said. “In the first match today, I felt like I was out of focus and struggled. I needed to come back and perform well.”

(more…)

Posted in: Sports, Spring sports |

Tags: Tags: alex taylor, comets, jeremy schneider, luke tsai, mason, mason high school, mason invitational, mason semifinal, miguel cepeda, nick lang, tennis

Mason tennis standout Miguel Cepeda is in the running for LaRosa’s MVP of the Week award.

Cepeda, who’s signed to play at Boston University, and doubles partner Luke Tsai were named sectional, district and Ohio state doubles’ champs last season.

The pair became the first boys tennis players from the program to reach a state final in 2011 when they lost to Upper Arlington’s Billy Weldon and Stu Little 6-3, 6-1.

Cepeda was also named 2nd team GMC and 1st team all-state by the tennis coaches’ association.

• Mason duo takes state tennis title

LaRosa’s MVPs of the Week are decided on the basis of popular vote. Cast your vote (registration required) at www.larosasmvp.com.

Posted in: Sports |

Tags: Tags: comets, larosa's mvp of the week, mason, mason high school, miguel cepeda, tennis

Jeff Wallner reports:

Mason High School was the epicenter of Ohio high school tennis Saturday morning as the state’s No. 1 ranked teams in both Division I and II competed in the 21st Greater Cincinnati Tennis Coaches Association Classic. While the Mason Comets asserted their dominance in doubles, the Cincinnati Country Day Indians stole the singles show.

In Flight A competition at Mason, CCD senior John Larkin improved to 12-1 this season with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Mason’s Luke Tsai in the first singles finals match. Larkin’s teammate Patrick Wildman remained undefeated with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Comets senior Miguel Cepeda in the second singles final.

Wildman now has defeated Cepeda twice this season, after going winless against him entering the year. “I served well today, and tried to cut down on my unforced errors,” Wildman said. “I wanted to make him beat me. I’ve been working on being more aggressive and moving into the court more.”

Larkin, who admittedly wears his emotions on his sleeve during matches, kept them in check during his match with Tsai. It was the first meeting between Larkin and Tsai, two of the area’s top singles players.

“I just tried to tighten things up mentally,” said Larkin, a Swarthmore (Pa.) College signee. “I give all the credit to Luke. He’s a great player. My forehand and my serve were working well for me. I’m just trying to get better in all areas.”

Mason twice outlasted Sycamore in doubles finals Saturday. The Comets’ duo of junior Alex Lebedev and sophomore Young-Jin Kang defeated Sycamore’s Dylan Stern and Mustafa Ahmad, 7-6, 7-6. “We keep each other together in pressure situations,” Kang said. Lebedev and Kang improved to 12-0.

Mason sophomore Nadim Boulos and freshman Sean Reid edged Sycamore’s Brian Goodman and Alex Taylor 7-6, 7-6. “We always want to have tough doubles teams,” said Mason coach Linda Kirtley.

Kirtley said the camaraderie her team has built over time is among their keys to success. “At the end of practice, they don’t want to go home,” Kirtley said. “They love being on the courts together. They push each other and root for each other.”

Flight A competition included six teams ranked in the top five of the Division I and II state tennis polls, including No. 1 Mason in D-I and top-ranked CCD in D-II. In Division I, Sycamore is ranked No. 2 in the state.

Mason finished first in the Flight A team standings. Sycamore was second and CCD third.

Posted in: Sports |

Tags: Tags: alex lebedev, comets, greater cincinnati tennis coaches association classic, john larkin, linda kirtley, luke tsai, mason, mason high school, miguel cepeda, nadim boulos, patrick wildman, sean reid, tennis, young-jin kang

Amina Ismail of Kings competes at the Div. I district tennis tournament at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason on Oct. 13, 2010. The Enquirer/ Cara Owsley

Kevin Goheen reports:

Kings junior Amina Ismail had already beaten one state champion on Saturday and was serving to even up the Division I district singles title match against defending state champion Mehvish Safdar.

Safdar held off Ismail’s charge, winning the final three games of the match to come away with her second consecutive district championship 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason.

Lakota West seniors Nicole Soutar and Tori Turner also needed three sets to take the district doubles title against senior Taylor Holden and sophomore Maddy Mueck of Lakota East, 7-6 (1), 5-7, 6-4.

The top four placers in both singles and doubles advanced to next weekend’s state tournament at Ohio State University.

Ismail was a surprise finalist against Safdar. Ismail, a state quarterfinalist as a freshman two years ago, beat Mount Notre Dame senior Sandy Niehaus in the morning semifinals 7-5, 7-5. Niehaus was the 2010 state champion and runner-up to Safdar last year.

“I was surprised to be playing her but it opened my eyes and reminded me that everyone out here is good and it’s not about who strikes the ball harder, but it’s the aside things like who keeps their head in the match,” said Safdar. “She was getting everything back. Even when I was up 3-0 she kept coming back. You have to put the other thoughts away and just play your game.”

(more…)

Posted in: Fall sports, Sports |

Tags: Tags: amina ismail, division i district singles title match, kings, kings high school, lindner family tennis center, mason, mehvish safdar, tennis

Kevin Goheen reports:

Cincinnati-area players claimed seven of eight state tennis tournament berths Thursday as the DivisionI girls’ district tournament began at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason.

Defending state singles champion Mehvish Safdar of Ursuline, 2010 state champion and 2011 runner-up Sandy Niehaus of Mount Notre Dame and 2010 state quarterfinalist Amina Ismail of Kings all won two matches on Thursday to advance to Saturday’s semifinals and automatically qualify for the state tournament.

This will be the fourth consecutive trip to the state tournament for Niehaus. She was a quarterfinalist in doubles with partner Kelly Dennis as a freshman in 2009.

Four doubles teams from four Greater Miami Conference schools earned state berths. The GMC was represented by seven of the eight quarterfinalists.

Juniors Nina Cepeda and Lynn Kelly of Mason, state quarterfinalists last year, will face the Lakota East duo of senior Taylor Holden and sophomore Maddy Mueck in one semifinal.

Holden joins Niehaus in earning a fourth state tournament appearance. She was a quarterfinalist in singles last year as a junior.

Holden missed more than three weeks of play because of a fractured hand bone. She got medical clearance to return a week ago.

“The whole team looked to her as the experienced competitor and when she was out the girls knew that,” said Lakota East coach Karen Barnes. “She stepped right in without missing a beat.”

Sycamore freshmen Alexa Abele and Maggie Skwara will play seniors Tori Turner and Nicole Soutar of Lakota West in the other semifinal. Both teams were sectional champions last week.

Niehaus had to beat junior Aundrea Busse of Springboro 6-3, 6-4 to reach the semifinals. Busse, the Dayton sectional champion, is among the top 50 players in her division of the USTA Midwest rankings, as are Niehaus, Safdar and Ismail.

Ismail and Niehaus will play in one semifinal, while Safdar will meet Springboro senior Julie Brockman in the other semifinal.

Posted in: Fall sports, Sports |

Tags: Tags: amina ismail, division i girls district tournament, kings, lindner family tennis center, lynn kelly, mason, mason high school, nina cepeda, tennis

Mason High School’s athletic office announced its athletes of the week.  This week’s honorees are football and tennis standouts Cameron Gunnels and Radhika Pandit.

Coaches say that Gunnels, a junior on the Mason football team, has consistently worked on his play each day at practice and that it has shown on the field on game night.

Coaches say that Pandit, a junior on the Mason girls’ tennis team, has become an accomplished doubles player, competing with an “attacking, aggressive game” and competes with “calm intensity.”

Posted in: Fall sports, Sports |

Tags: Tags: athletes of the week, cameron gunnels, comets, football, mason, mason high school, radhika pandit, sports, tennis

Roger Federer shakes hands with John F. Barrett, Western & Southern CEO, after his win Sunday against Novak Djokovic in the men’s singles final of the Western & Southern Open in Mason.

Here’s a look back at the highlights of the Western & Southern Open at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason.

Highlights

• Federer defeats Djokovic for W&S Open title
• Doc: Djokovic lacked motivation
• Li Na defeats Kerber for first W&S Open title
• Schedules/Results
• Serve the Word blog updates

Photo Galleries

• Li Na defeats Kerber
• Federer wins in Mason
• Kerber defeats Kvitova
• Li Na defeats Venus Williams
• Federer defeats Wawrinka
• Kerber defeats Serena Williams
• Venus Williams defeats Stosur
• Del Potro defeats Chardy
• Venus Williams vs. Sara Errani
• Chardy defeats Roddick
• Fish defeats Lopez
• Autograph-seekers at the W&S Open
• The hats at the W&S Open
• Tennis tournament volunteers

Posted in: Sports, W&S Open |

Tags: Tags: champions, chardy, del potro sara errani, fish, kerber, li na, lindner family tennis center, mason, open, roddick, roger federer, serena williams, serve the word, sports, tennis, venus williams, w&s open, wawrinka, western & southern open

Roger Federer is the same age as Pete Sampras was, when Sampras decided to ditch the intercontinental drift. Federer shows no signs of tiring of room service and Grand Slam titles. / The Enquirer/Joseph Fuqua II

Paul Daugherty reports:

In the middle of a hot Thursday afternoon, in a half-full tennis stadium across the interstate from an amusement park in Mason, Serena Williams allowed herself a moment of exhaustion.

She was 45 minutes into a 70-minute match with a Polish player named Urszula Radwanska. Radwanska might have been just the 46th-ranked woman in the world, but she had the advantage of being 21 years old. Williams will be 31 next month. Did she remember what it was like, to be 21 and playing tennis for money?

Was it better, or at least easier?

We might forget what it’s like to be a professional tennis player. If we even thought about it, we might run the other way. Serena Williams played her first pro match at the age of 13. That means she has been training, playing, continent-hopping and paparazzi-coping for well more than half her life.

If this is Friday, it must be Zurich. Unless it’s Copenhagen or Cincinnati.

When the Reds talk about a “grueling’’ trip to the West Coast, they should check with a tennis pro first.

Now, Williams is here – this is Cincinnati, right? I remember the Eiffel Tower – being run all over the court by a 21-year-old. Down two breaks in the second set, Williams stood on the baseline and let her tongue droop. It hung over her lower lip like a wet dishrag across a kitchen faucet.

“I was happy to get through that match,’’ she said later. “I was a little tired.’’

A little tired? Williams’ body language said, “I could sleep like Rip Van Winkle.’’ She wore one of those thousand-yard, anywhere-but-here stares. The scoreboard said she won in straight sets. Her body said she’d survived one more little war.

(more…)

Posted in: Sports, W&S Open |

Tags: Tags: age, lindner family tennis center, mardy fish, mason, older, paul daugherty, pete sampras, roger federer, serena williams, tennis, urszula radwanska, w&s open, western & southern open, wimbledon

Serena Williams returns a shot during her match Tuesday night against qualifier Eleni Daniilidou. Williams won 6-3, 6-4.

Shannon Russell reports:

Serena Williams’ biggest obstacle Tuesday night was herself.

The American had more unforced errors (44) than winners (32) in a 6-3, 6-4 victory over qualifier Eleni Daniilidou at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason.

The Western & Southern Open’s second-seeded player squandered 10 break point conversions and expressed audible frustration before polishing off the win in 92 minutes.

“I had 44 unforced errors. That’s shocking. It’s unprofessional,” Williams said afterward. “Hopefully I can clean up my act for my next match.”

She has a day to regroup. The WTA’s fourth-ranked player faces one of two qualifiers – Yaroslava Shvedova or Urszula Radwanska – when she plays again Thursday.

Williams said she was glad to get the match under her belt in her transition back to hard courts. She has spent a good deal of time lately competing at the All England Club, from her Wimbledon title to her Olympic singles and doubles gold-medal ascents.

Daniilidou’s last four tournaments have been on hard courts. The Greek player’s quickness in Tuesday’s match bothered Williams as much as the surface.

Nothing seemed to feel right for Williams throughout. Not her long ponytail, which she fashioned into a bun during a break in the action. Not even her racquet strings.

“My racquets were just so not right today. I couldn’t hit my shots the way I wanted to because they kept flying,” Williams said. “I ended up playing longer rallies, which is fine, but I have to have my strings strung right. It just was not strung right.”

No. 121 Daniilidou double faulted nine times and won only 10 of her 29 second serve points. But she didn’t go quietly, holding serve after Williams jumped ahead 5-3 in the second set.

Williams did the same to ensure the win.

Posted in: Sports, W&S Open |

Tags: Tags: eleni daniilidou, lindner family tennis center, mason, serena williams, tennis, urzcula radwanska, w&s open, western & southern open, wta, yaroslava shvedova

A dejected Andy Roddick looks skyward during his loss Tuesday to Jeremy Chardy at the Western and Southern Open.

Shannon Russell reports:

Two-time champion Andy Roddick couldn’t overcome a back ailment or lucky loser Jeremy Chardy in a first-round Western & Southern upset at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason.

World No. 38 Chardy bounced No. 21 Roddick 7-6 (4), 6-3 two days after Roddick had “a little bit of a back issue” at practice. It bothered him again Tuesday on Center Court.

“I felt fine early on and then I had one lunge forehand and, you know, we have all had it, you know, back kind of goes out or spasms a little bit,” Roddick said. “It got progressively worse.”

Jeremy Chardy pumps his fist after winning a point against Andy Roddick in the Western & Southern Open on Aug. 14, 2012.

Chardy noticed. The Frenchman, who lost to Roddick at Eastbourne in June, felt the momentum shift midway through the second set.

“I think that in the first set he was playing good. It was a tough match and we were serving very well together,” Chardy said. “In the second set, I don’t know what was happening for him. He started to serve it a bit slower and then I didn’t feel him very focused on the game.”

Chardy broke Roddick for the 4-3 lead. It was a death knell for the patriotic-shoe-wearing, 16th-seeded American, who was dispatched quickly thereafter.

Although Chardy struggled at times to handle Roddick’s 135 mile per hour serves, the Frenchman benefited from Roddick’s 25 unforced errors in a match that took 92 minutes to complete.

So now Chardy, who lost to Fabio Fognini in the second round of qualifying Sunday, moves on to play Denis Istomin in a second-round main draw match.

Chardy started the weekend as the No. 1 seed in the qualifying draw. Since he was the highest-ranked loser in the second round of qualifying, John Isner’s Saturday withdrawal created an opportunity for him as a lucky loser.

Chardy said he knew ninth-seeded Isner might pull out before the announcement was made and prepared accordingly.

“I knew the first match was very important for me because I was seeded No. 1. I knew if I won my first match against (Robby) Ginepri, I have a chance to be in the main draw,” Chardy said.

Chardy defeated Roddick for the first time in four meetings before a pro-Roddick crowd. Fans yelled Roddick’s name and tried to inspire him when a series of unforced errors paved the way for Chardy’s go-ahead game.

Even Reds pitcher Homer Bailey was in the stands to support Roddick.

“Homer is an Austin guy. I have been out to watch him pitch a couple times the last couple years and he hadn’t been to a match. He picked a good one to come to,” Roddick joked.

Roddick’s back problems leave lingering questions about his health heading into the U.S. Open. The 29-year-old won the Atlanta Open in July despite a sore right shoulder and conceded that injuries have frustrated him this year.

“The last thing I like doing is being out there today knowing I’m compromised. I feel like that’s been a lot of my matches this year. Certainly not fun, but I didn’t complain too much about the 10 years I had of clean health,” Roddick said.

“You know, I’ve got to try to keep it in a little bit of perspective, which is hard in the moment. Over the long haul of a career, my body has been pretty good to me.”

Posted in: Sports, W&S Open |

Tags: Tags: andy roddick, denis istomin, eastbourne, fabio fognini, homer bailey, jeremy chardy, john isner, lindner family tennis center, loss, mason, sports, tennis, w&s open, western & southern open