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Boys’ Tennis: CdM wins fun Battle of the Bay

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It’s rare to see such a high-level set in high school boys’ tennis, but Newport Harbor High senior Reese Stalder and Corona del Mar junior Bjorn Hoffmann put on a show Wednesday afternoon in the Battle of the Bay.

Stalder, a TCU signee, is ranked No. 2 in the Southern California boys’ 18s by the United States Tennis Assn. Hoffmann, who recently committed to Cal, is right behind that at No. 3.

The good friends seemingly matched each other shot for shot, but Stalder earned a break of serve with the set at 5-5. He then saved a few break points and held serve himself in a long game, closing out a 7-5 victory.

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Sets like these haven’t been possible in recent years. Wednesday’s match marked the first Battle of the Bay in boys’ tennis since 2011.

Players from both sides really seemed to be energized and enjoy themselves in the fun match, which ended with Corona del Mar winning, 11-7, at the Sailors’ courts.

“It was good to be back and seeing some familiar faces,” said CdM Coach Jamie Gresh, who coached JV girls’ tennis at Harbor for two years before being hired across the bay in 2012. “Obviously, it’s great to have the rivalry restored of Battle of the Bay. It’s a great away match, where we drive I think three miles and come over and play a good team.”

The Sea Kings (4-3), ranked No. 8 in CIF Southern Section Division 1, won the match in doubles. They captured eight of nine doubles sets. The No. 1 team of senior Tyler Gaede and junior Oliver Kim, as well as the No. 2 team of sophomores Matt Paulsen and Grant Brown, both swept for the Sea Kings. The No. 3 team of senior Johnny Rhone and freshman Ryan Wessler won twice.

Gaede and Kim won the last set on court, which also turned out to be the closest, when they edged Newport Harbor’s team of senior David Schaefer and freshman Andy Myers, 7-6 (7-3).

“I knew it was going to come down to doubles, and I felt like our guys have been playing good doubles lately so I was confident with that,” Gresh said. “I liked our lineup that we played, and I thought the guys played better and better each round, so that was key. We started off maybe a little tight, a little nervous on a couple courts, but after getting a couple of set wins under our belt, I felt like we played better and better.”

The Sea Kings took a lead of 4-2 after the first round and 8-4 after two rounds. Still, Newport Harbor (6-1) made CdM work for the win.

The Sailors swept in singles in the third round. Along with Stalder’s victory over Hoffmann, Sailors sophomore David Lee topped CdM senior Dan LaBruna, 6-1, and junior Gavin Leonard got past CdM freshman Jacob Cooper, 6-3.

Suddenly, the set score was narrowed to 8-7. But CdM proceeded to sweep the three doubles sets in the final round.

“I thought it was fun,” Gaede said. “This year was probably going to be the most competitive [Battle of the Bay], because CdM has been a lot stronger in the past. It was definitely fun, because this was my first and last time. But it was also fun because it was more competitive, going into that last round and feeling like we really had to win.”

Newport Harbor Coach Kristen Case also was proud of her squad, which was undefeated until Wednesday and also captured the Sage Hill-hosted Lightning Invitational for the third straight year on Feb. 28. She said it’s the strongest boys’ team she’s had in several years.

“It’s great we were able to work out [Battle of the Bay] and fit it into the schedule this year,” Case said. “It’s perfect timing for us. We’ve been playing great tennis, we’ve been improving, and we needed this sort of a challenge. We needed to play up against a little bit higher of a level, and it’s really going to benefit us moving forward. It’s a friendly rivalry out there. It was good quality tennis, and definitely a fun match to have.”

Stalder swept his three sets to stay undefeated on the season, and Lee won twice for Newport Harbor. David Schaefer and Myers won Newport Harbor’s lone doubles set, when they beat Rhone and Wessler, 6-4, in the first round.

“We came out wanting to show them who we are and what we stand for over here,” said Schaefer, one of three senior starters for Newport along with Stalder and Ryan Young. “We haven’t played them for a while, so we wanted to show them that we’re not a team that will roll over or give up by any means ... It’s good momentum moving forward and starting league.”

Hoffmann easily won his other two singles sets for CdM, and LaBruna also picked up a victory in the first round.

Newport Harbor plays host to Tesoro on Thursday and is indeed getting ready for league play, which starts at Los Alamitos on March 26.

Corona del Mar, meanwhile, plays host to the National All-American Tournament beginning Friday. The Sea Kings’ first match in the 16-team tournament is against defending champion The Beacon School of New York, at 8:30 a.m. Friday at CdM.

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