CdM remains perfect

ROLLING HILLS ESTATES — Somewhere on the other side of the big hill, Corona del Mar High’s next opponent played.

Coach Brian Ricker, with his back to the hill, looked relaxed while eating a sandwich.

The Sea Kings clinched their third straight CIF Southern Section Division I championship appearance by the second round of the girls’ tennis match at Peninsula Thursday.

In no hurry to find out which team was next, Ricker watched CdM easily win, 13-5, in the semifinals.

“I haven’t heard,” Ricker said of the score between No. 2-seeded Dana Hills and No. 3-seeded Palos Verdes.

He kept chewing on the sandwich.

“I don’t think any of the girls have buddies on those teams,” said Ricker in between bites, as he decided against stopping by Palos Verdes to watch the other semifinal match. “[We will] go home and let the kids start their homework.”

It’s not like the Sea Kings have a lot of studying to do on the court.

They’re 19-0 this season and they’re deep.

The next team has a lot of work to do if it plans to ruin CdM’s perfect season.

Can it get anymore ideal for the Sea Kings to close out the season against Dana Hills?

Dana Hills plays CdM in the section final for the second straight year after defeating Palos Verdes, 14-4.

The Dolphins prevented CdM from claiming back-to-back titles with a 12-6 victory last season.

It’s time for a rematch at the Claremont Club Monday at 10:30 a.m.

Karen Ishii can’t wait, even though she could barely get around Thursday.

The senior sat out No. 2 doubles action after injuring a hip in the quarterfinals against Troy Wednesday.

“I would like to play Dana Hills just because it just makes it that much more special,” Ishii said. “I think most of my teammates would agree.”

The Sea Kings want the Dolphins.

Ishii wants to play. CdM most likely needs her services to get revenge and finish the season undefeated for the second time in three years.

With Ishii, the Sea Kings boast three robust doubles teams, starting with Lindsay Zotovich and Danielle Kaiden at No. 1, followed by Ishii and Kelli Feeley at No. 2, and Paige Polizois and Rebecca Beyer at No 3.

Ishii and Feeley won the Pacific Coast League doubles title by beating Zotovich and Kaiden in a tight title match Nov. 6. Both doubles teams have just one loss each.

The Sea Kings on Oct. 15 relied on doubles play to hand the then top-ranked Dolphins an 11-7 nonleague loss, their first of the season.

Ishii and Feeley won two of the eight doubles sets claimed by CdM that day.

Ishii tried to give it a go against Peninsula (15-6), saying she received a shot from Beyer’s father, who’s a surgeon, the morning of the semis.

“It wasn’t a cortisone shot or anything crazy like that,” Ishii said. “As long as I’m smart about everything and don’t do stupid stuff or overwork myself, I think I should be back by Monday.”

Ricker overheard Ishii and chimed in.

“What are you doing?” Ricker asked Ishii. “Running a marathon?”

Ishii laughed. She wasn’t going far.

She sat on an ice chest for much of the match, rooting her teammates on.

Ishii said CdM entered the match nervous. She was scared for them.

The Sea Kings shook the nerves by jumping out to a 6-0 lead in the opening round.

Practically everyone in singles excelled, starting with No. 1 player Melissa Matsuoka sweeping every game in her two sets before being substituted for in the third set.

Katelyn Nguyen, playing No. 2 singles, also won two sets before sitting out the last one.

Azadeh Nazemi, the No. 3 player, had the best day. The junior won her three sets.

“Almost half our team is seniors, we just wanted to make it special for them,” said Nazemi of making sure the Sea Kings qualified for the final. “We all wanted to do it for Karen because we knew she really wanted to play, but she couldn’t.

“Hopefully she’ll be better by Monday, so she can join us on the court.”

CIF Division I playoffs

Semifinals

Corona del Mar 13, Peninsula 5

Singles – Matsuoka (CdM) def. Zheng, 6-0, def. Shah, 6-0, (sub) Murray (CdM) lost to Tatsuno, 0-6; (sub) Wang (CdM) lost, 4-6, K. Nguyen (CdM) won, 6-0, 6-4; Nazemi (CdM) won, 6-1, 6-3, 6-4.

Doubles – Zotovich-Kaiden (CdM) def. Glimp-La. Gutierrez, 6-2, def. Coleman-Bunnag, 6-3, def. Chang-Le. Gutierrez, 6-3; Beyer-Polizois (CdM) lost, 1-6, won, 6-1, 6-3; Feeley-E. Nguyen (CdM) lost, 4-6, 4-6, won, 6-1.