Nikolova Repeats as City Champ

Katy Nikolova wrapped up her high school tennis career in style. After being pushed to three sets in the semifinals of the City Section Individual singles tournament, the Palisades High senior needed barely an hour to defend her championship with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Granada Hills freshman Alexandra Tallas Monday afternoon at the Balboa Sports Center in Encino. It was a fitting end for Nikolova, who led the Dolphins to their third consecutive team title in November and became the seventh player in section history to win at least two consecutive Individual singles titles. “You can’t put any one [title] in front of another, but this was my last one and Mr. Kling’s last one so it means a lot,” said Nikolova, who lost three sets in 19 matches this season. “It’s been a great three years and I’m going to miss my teammates.” Palisades Coach Bud Kling is stepping down as girls coach but will coach the boys team in the spring. If the match was a celebration of sorts for Nikolova, it proved to be a learning experience for her opponent. The second-seeded Tallas used a serve-and-volley style to win the first two games but was unable to sustain her attack. “My strategy was just to come out and give it my all,” said Tallas, who was awarded the No. 2 seed after finishing undefeated in the West Valley League. “She kept using drop shots so I thought if I came to the net I’d stand a better chance.” Nikolova rebounded from her slow start to win five straight games. She served out the first set, broke for a 1-0 lead in the second, then broke again two games later. Serving at 5-2, Nikolova took a 40-15 lead before Tallas dumped a forehand approach shot into the net on match point. “The draw this year was a little stronger,” said Nikolova, among the top 30 in Southern California in the USTA girls 18s rankings. “I wasn’t very warm when I got out there today and she took advantage of that. She’s a pretty good baseliner so I had to mix things up a little bit and use different shots.” Though Palisades had the top two seeds in the Individual doubles tournament, neither won the championship. That went to Becky Friedman and Leeann Hsueh, who defeated teammates Allie Amor and Kelly Paris, 6-1, 6-3, in an all-Granada Hills final.