Eagles tennis soaring to greater heights

EDISON - The Edison High School girls tennis team registered an impressive 5-0 victory over Woodbridge last week before embarking on its quest for a state title. The Eagles opened state tournament play earlier this week against Piscataway.

"We were originally supposed to face off against Ridge in the first round, but the scheduling was changed," Edison head coach Wesley Smith said. "The winner gets J.P. Stevens. We'd rather play somebody else just for the idea of playing someone out of conference."

The Eagles hope the hot play of No. 1 singles player Erika Goldsmith can lead them to the second round and a possible state title. Goldsmith cruised to a 6-0, 6-0 win over Woodbridge's Joan Kuchie after playing her way in the Greater Middlesex Conference Flight Tournament semifinals. Goldsmith dismissed Cardinal McCarrick's Kristy Rivera 6-0, 6-0 in the second round before beating New Brunswick's Satreethai Sasinin in straight sets. She lost to eventual champion Stef Balasa of East Brunswick in the semifinals, 6-2, 6-2.

"Erika's doing a great job," Smith said. "She got a tough seeding in the semifinals and had to face Stef Balasa, but she played her well. She beat Luba Smolensky of J.P. Stevens, another semifinalist, earlier this year, but was seeded lower than Luba. It was the luck of the draw."

Through the team's eight regular-season matches, Goldsmith enters this week with a 7-1 record.

At No. 2 singles, senior Raji Raman was impressive in her 6-2, 6-4 win over Woodbridge's Brittany Holowka.

"Raji has made a nice adjustment from number three, where she played last year, to number two," Smith said. "She plays well for the team and really steps up her level of play in team matches."

Sophomore Fatima Siddiqui handled Staci Rose with little problem in her 6-0, 6-3 victory.

"She's really improved the consistency of her game," Smith said. "She rarely makes mistakes and can frustrate her opponents."

The tandem of senior Sneha Iyer and junior Sushmitha Chennamaraju picked up a 6- 2, 6-4 win over Kelly Walsh and Shauna McCaig at No. 1 doubles. At No. 2 doubles, Edison's Marissa Aucoin and Anwesha Sinha earned a 6-3, 7-6 victory over Karen Munoz and Ashley Figueroa.

"We lost a couple of 3-2 matches earlier in the season and I felt it was time to try and figure out a magic potion to get us over the hump," Smith said. "I went with different lineups at doubles, and it has been working. Sneha and Sushmitha are working well together, and Marissa and Anwesha have improved."

While the jostled lineup helped qualify the Eagles for the state tournament, Smith has not out ruled further alterations.

"We have a number of players that could see more action on the court at doubles," he said. "Seniors Rucha Pandit, Vikki Chang and Jigisha Patel along with sophomore Shivangi Modi could play their way into the lineup."

- Shawn Layton