Short-handed Homewood-Flossmoor takes title

Updated: September 10, 2011 11:58PM

With three state qualifiers and arguably the team’s best three players out for “personal reasons,” in the forms of Dana Shannon, Adesuwa Osabuohien and Danielle Dixon, Homewood-Flossmoor was still able to win the 16-team Lincoln-Way East Invitational Saturday. The Vikings outscored Lockport 29-20 for the crown and showed just how deep the team is.

“These girls on the court right now have character,” H-F coach Don Baron said. “Everyone was put in new positions and they stepped up.

“These girls from Day 1, who are on the court right now, represent the program and have worked extremely hard. They take their conditioning and drills seriously and that is the art of this program.”

No. 1 singles was a new position for H-F’s two-time doubles state qualifier Faith Huckabee this season and she went 4-0 on the day, handing Lockport’s Abigail Plecki (10-1) her first loss of the season in the championship 6-3, 6-2.. With the win Huckabee remains undefeated on the season at singles at 12-0.

“I think I’m a better singles player,” Huckabee said. “Today showed how strong we are as a team.

“The bottom players are strong too.”

At No. 1 doubles, the H-F duo of Colleen Kenney and Allison Lesner (12-1) won the championship, knocking off the Lockport doubles team of Kelsey Forkin and Kat Samardzija 6-1, 6-1 in the finals.

“We had a really strong day,” Kenney said. “We’re really strong as a team and we know how to step up when we need to.

Timara Maxwell and Jackie Winkler, of H-F, took home the championship at No. 2 doubles, defeating Leena Hwang and Alexis Blackmon, of Oswego East, 6-1, 6-1 in the championship.

“It isn’t all about one person for us,” Lesner said. “We’re a team.”

Hope Ritter, of Lincoln-Way East, lost in the No. 2 singles championship to Evelyn Demirijian, of F.W. Parker, 6-1, 6-4.

Stagg (17) finished third, Lincoln-Way East (14) finished fifth, Lincoln-Way North (11) finished seventh, Sandburg (10) tied for eighth, Lincoln-Way Central (7) finished 10th, Andrew (6) tied for 11th, Lincoln-Way West (4) finished 13th, Hillcrest (2) finished 15th and Thornwood (0) finished 16th to round out the team scores.

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