Finishing What They Started

Palisades High Doubles Team Captures City Individual Tennis Title

The smiles on the faces of Maddy Prins and Lizzie Belokonnyi after winning the City Individual doubles final said it all.

Since they decided to team up after last year’s tournament, the Palisades High juniors have been practically inseparable. They’ve spent more time with each other than with their own families. They can read each other’s thoughts, finish each other’s sentences and anticipate each other’s moves on the court. And they’ve become best friends.

“Both of us have had different partners for two years and placed second and third so this was huge for us,” said Prins, who lost the previous two Individual finals with Julie Takakjian. “It’s been our goal to make it back here and win. So we couldn’t be happier.”

Their year-long odyssey  came to an end last Thursday afternoon at Balboa Sports Center in Encino, where the two were crowned section tennis champions after a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Granada Hills’ Sydney Hsueh and Shalini Vijaye Kumar − a just reward for 12 months of hard work and dedication. In accomplishing their personal mission they also ended the West Valley League’s eight-year streak of doubles champions and became the first Palisades tandem to win the Individual title since 2005 when Yasmir Navas and Lauren Pugatch upset another Granada Hills pair, Roxanne Plata and Julia Dyachenko, in three sets.

Prins and Belokonnyi led the Dolphins to their second consecutive team championship this fall, but their individual triumph was perhaps even more satisfying because of the sacrifices they had to make along the way.

“Both of our partners graduated so we figured now’s the time, the sooner we start playing together the better,” said Belokonnyi, who was third at Individuals last year with Katie Vincent. “Over the summer we went to camp and then after camp we went to practice together with another coach. “We both wanted it a lot. Driving four hours one way to tournaments, sitting in traffic − it was exhausting, but this makes it all worth it.”

Prins and Belokonnyi did not drop a set in five matches despite twice having to play two rounds in one day and they finished the season undefeated against City opponents.

“She knows everything about me, I know everything about her and having that bond allows us to handle anything on the court,” Belokonnyi said. “Our chemistry is great together and having that bond allows us to handle any situation on the court,” Prins said.

The tournament was delayed several times due to rain and along with the pressure associated with being the No. 1 seed, the Palisades pair had the added burden of being their school’s only hope after the Dolphins’ other two doubles teams dropped out before the tournament started. Yet nothing was going to deny Prins and Belokonnyi on Thursday − not even a Highlanders duo that presented a style they weren’t used to seeing.

“The conditions weren’t easy, it was windy, it was about to rain and they don’t have as much pace as the teams we normally train with so we had to push through that mentally,” Prins said. “It’s a confidence thing − you want to stay aggressive but you don’t want to hit it too hard.”

Their experience showed as they raced to a 5-0 lead in the first set and closed it out on Prins’ service winner. After Hsueh and Vijaye Kumar took a 3-2 lead in the second set, Belokonnyi held serve to level the match, Prins executed a drop shot to break the Highlanders pair the next game and Prins hit two aces and a forehand winner for a 5-3 lead. Belokonnyi’s crosscourt forehand winner brought Palisades to match point and after a double fault, she and Prins finally had reason for celebration, although even that was short and subdued because both had to study for finals the next day.

“I can’t think of anyone more deserving of this than Maddy and Lizzie,” Pali High Coach Sean Passan said. “They’ve been outstanding team captains and leaders all season and they’ve been committed to this since last year, so I’m really happy for them.”

As driven as they were to win Individuals this year, they are just as determined to defend the title next fall.

“Two in a row is our goal,” Belokonnyi said. “So no offseason for us. We’ll be training all next semester and playing USTA events over the summer.”

In the third-place singles match, Palisades senior Diana Silvers defeated Narbonne’s Kyra DeCastro 7-5, 6-2. In the semifinals, Silvers had lost to Sarah Nuno, who won the singles championship for the third time Thursday after beating Granada Hills teammate Risa Fukushige, 6-1, 6-3.