Laguna Beach, Sage Hill Look to Net Tennis Titles

As the professional tennis players compete in Paris on the clay courts of Roland Garos, two Orange County Patch teams will be playing on the hardcourts at The Claremont Club in the CIF Souther Section boys tennis team finals on Wednesday. Admission is free.

Here are breakdown of the two matches:

Division 3 Championship

No. 3 Sage Hill (23-6) vs. No. 4 Placentia Valencia (19-3), 11 a.m.

Semifinal results -- Sage Hill d. Cerritos 11-7; Valencia d. St. Margaret’s 9-9 (81-76)

Quarterfinal results -- Sage Hill d. Long Beach Wilson, 14-4; Valencia d. Oaks Christian, 11-7

Second-round results -- Sage Hill d. Upland, 14-4; Valencia d. Los Osos, 12-6

First-round results -- Sage Hill d. Corona, 14-4; Valencia d. Corona Santiago, 14-4

Players to watch -- Sage Hill: Andrew Kurzweil, sr.; Robbe Simon, jr.; Alex Manolakas, jr. Valencia: Brandon Chang, sr.; Jonathan Hammel, jr.

Notes -- Right before spring break, following an Academy League victory over Crean Lutheran, Sage Hill Kurzweil told all of his teammates to make sure they hit over the break because, as he said, “We have a chance to win CIF.”  The work that the Lightning's players put in over the break, as well as over the course of the season, will be put to the test Wednesday against a Valencia team headed by a dynamic one-two singles punch in nationally-ranked players Brandon Chang and Jonathan Hammel. Sage Hill, seeking its first section title, appears to have more depth in doubles.

Division 4 Championship

No. 1 Viewpoint (Calabasas) (16-2) vs. No. 2 Laguna Beach (14-7), 2:30 p.m.

Semifinal results -- Laguna Beach d. Santa Ynez, 14-4; Viewpoint d. Paramount, 17-1

Quarterfinal results -- Laguna Beach d. Alhambra, 14-4; Viewpoint d. Paramount, 17-1

Second -ound results -- Laguna Beach d. Lynwood, 16-2; Viewpoint d. Costa Mesa (forfeit)

First-round results -- Laguna Beach d. Orcutt Academy, 17-1; Viewpoint d. Paloma Valley, 18-0

Players to watch -- Laguna Beach: Jake Michaels, sr.; Benito Romeo, sr.; Teague Hamilton, so. Viewpoint: Bryce Beisswanger, sr.; Kobi Joffe, sr.; Jack Kleinman, sr.

Notes -- For one team, the string of lopsided victories in the playoffs will come to an end.  Something has got to give.  The Breakers have been racking up victories on the singles side behind Michaels, who has committed to Cornell. Hamilton is one of the hardest hitting No. 2 singles players in all of Division 4 and will be a tough matchup for Viewpoint. The key to the match could come down to which team can keep its composure in close matches. The teams have not played each other this season, but Laguna Beach Coach Davidson said, “Viewpoint is from Calabasas and Calabasas is known for good tennis, so we have our work cut out for us.” He said his team was entering its final match fully healthy and looking forward to the match.