Ross teams of Biggins/Hutton and Gallagher/Abdoo win doubles titles at own tourney

FREMONT – Sophia Biggins made sure to end the day on an emphatic note.

Playing championship point in the No. 4 doubles bracket alongside Mallory Hutton, one of their opponents from Sandusky Perkins floated a soft shot over the net. Playing the front court, Biggins wasted little time slamming the ball back at the Pirates, who could only watch helplessly as Biggins and Hutton claimed the match, 6-2, 6-2, and the bracket championship.

“They kind of set it up perfect for a shot,” Biggins said. “It was nice to end the match on a good shot like that. It feels a lot better like that.”

Biggins and Hutton’s title was one of three the Lady Giants won Saturday as they hosted the Michaels Memorial Doubles Tournament. Juniors Gillian Gallagher and Lily Abdoo won at No. 1 doubles and Ross won the team championship, totaling 79 points, edging out Port Clinton’s 75.

“That’s nice,” coach Lisa Wolfe said. “I had high expectations going into this tournament, but so did I for Perkins too.”

Biggins and Hutton’s day began with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Sylvania Northview and then a 6-2, 6-0 win over Port Clinton.

“It feels really good,” Hutton said. “We worked really hard for it.”

While the duo don’t play together often, they’ve only had positive results when they do. Their only other doubles action together this year came last month at the Perkins Pirate Invite, another doubles tournament, where they also went 3-0 and won the No. 4 bracket.

 

“They gel together and they make a great No. 4 doubles for a tournament,” Wolfe said. “Mallory can be very aggressive at the net, and so can Sophia at times, but she’s more of a laid-back baseline shot. They complement each other.”

At No. 1 doubles, Gallagher and Abdoo started their day slowly, winning the first set of their first match 7-5 before taking form and winning the second set 6-1.

“We weren’t completely warmed up and just making dumb mistakes,” Abdoo said.

But their challenges weren’t over.

Gallagher nearly fell ill to dehydration in the second match, a 6-4, 6-2 win over Northview. Abdoo tweaked her knee, aggravating a previous injury from earlier in the year, in the championship match, a 6-2, 6-1 win over Port Clinton.

Despite the difficulties, the two stuck to their gameplan.

“The whole thing was to set each other up, that’s what we love to do,” Gallagher said. “If it’s a corner ball, they can’t angle it as well so they’re going to hit it (straight) to the net. So Lily kept hitting corner balls and that’s the only reason I had all the net work. If she wasn’t hitting the corner balls, I wouldn’t have hit two all day. It’s a team effort.”

At No. 2 doubles, Olivia Henry and Natalie Brown won easily over Huron, 6-0, 6-2, to start the day but lost in the second round to Port Clinton 6-7 (4-7), 3-6. They bounced back to claim third place with an 8-2 win over Perkins.

At No. 3 doubles, Jurni Kidd and Berlin Swaisgood lost their opener to Perkins, 5-7, 3-6. They won 8-1 in their second match against St. Joseph Central Catholic, then lost to Northview, 6-8, to take sixth in the bracket.

Wolfe was impressed by her team’s handling of the day’s weather. Playing three matches with temperatures in the 80s, with no shade or breeze on the courts, can make for a grueling day.

“We’re not used to this heat, it has been very cool and you’re playing duel matches, you’re one-and-done on the courts,” Wolf said. “With a tournament like this you’re playing three rounds. It’s something they’re not used to.”

But the Lady Giants had a deeper motivation for sticking through the heat and claiming their championships.

They wanted the swag.

“I’ve gotten runner-up t-shirts the last two years and I said ‘Nuh-uh, I want that champs shirt,’” Abdoo said.

Added Gallagher: “So if you see us rocking a t-shirt that says ‘Champ’ on it, that’s why.”