Palo Verde, Coronado boys to meet for state title again today

RENO — No matter what route they take, the Palo Verde and Coronado boys tennis teams always seem to end up in the same place.

They will meet up again at noon today in the finals of the Division I state tournament at the Caughlin Athletic Club after both teams won semifinal matches Thursday.

Palo Verde defeated North No. 1 seed Reno 12-6, and Coronado beat North No. 2 seed Bishop Manogue 14-4.

The Cougars have gotten the better of the Panthers to win the last two state championships, after Palo Verde had beaten them three times in the finals while winning four state titles in five years between 2006-10.

“It’s crazy that we can meet in the finals so many times,” Coronado coach Luther Bohanan said. “It will be a team from Las Vegas bringing home the state title, so it’s not a disgrace to come in second to a quality team from the other side of the valley.”

The final tallies may have been similar Thursday, but the matches were much different.

Palo Verde made coach Zach Brandt sweat for two rounds, leading just 7-5, before Coronado dominated its first round matchup and led 9-3 after two rounds.

Rhett Bossung and the doubles team of Connor Safbom and Brandon Sulzberg each went 3-0 to lead Palo Verde.

Unlike Brandt, Bohanan was breathing free and easy after his team led 5-1 in the first round against Bishop Manogue.

The No. 1 doubles teams of Kian Habashi and Martin Rizov, the No. 2 doubles team of Kyle Harris and Egbert and singles player Sam Grant were all 3-0 for Coronado, while Ryland McDermott was 2-0.

DIVISION I GIRLS

Dominance has been a matter of routine this season for the Palo Verde girls tennis team.

That made Thursday just another day at the office for the Panthers, which is just the way coach Jane Centrella wants it.

Palo Verde dispatched Reno 17-1 in the semifinals of the Division I state tournament at the Caughlin Athletic Club. The Panthers, who finished second at last year’s state tournament, will face Douglas for the title at 9 a.m. today. Douglas defeated Coronado 10-8 in the other semifinal match.

“It was definitely our goal because we’ve been so close for so long,” Centrella said of the possibility of winning a state title. “But I told them to just work hard, never take anything for granted, stay focused and fight for every single point.”

Chloe Henderson in singles and the doubles team of Michaela Jackson and Alissa Till were the only Panthers to play all three rounds, going 3-0.

Coronado narrowly missed out on a chance to challenge Palo Verde, losing 10-8 to Douglas.

In the second round, the Douglas doubles team of Ingrid Carlson and Tara Contrill came back from a 5-1 deficit to beat Camille Solla and Sam Ross 7-5.

Samantha Smith was 3-0 for Coronado, and Lauren Coons went 2-1, as did the doubles team of Nikoletta Nikoloff and Allie Doherty, but the Cougars won only one other match.

DIVISION I-A BOYS

Michael Pasimio and Marcus Pasimio each went 3-0 in singles to help Clark’s boys win their 50th consecutive match with a 13-5 victory over South Tahoe in the Division I-A boys semifinals at the Reno Tennis Center. The Chargers (15-0) will face The Meadows (13-3) for the title at noon today.

Chaitanya Ingle and Felix Zurhorst were 3-0 in doubles for Clark.

Kevin Chau, Alex Lanzkowsky and Matthew Lamb each went 3-0 in singles to lead The Meadows to an 11-7 victory over Truckee.

DIVISION I-A GIRLS

Faith Lutheran and The Meadows will vie for the girls team title at 9 a.m. today after both won handily Thursday.

Talia Graf and Kristina Berg went 3-0 in doubles to help the Crusaders down Churchill County, 15-3. Madison Foley, Carolyn DiPasquale and Kathleen Wright all went 2-0 in singles for Faith Lutheran (16-1).

Erika Reiter was 3-0 in singles, and Olivia Waysack and Audrey Grigore went 3-0 in doubles as the Mustangs (13-3) downed Truckee, 16-2.