Garden City Sweeps Nassau County Singles, Doubles Titles

It’s been a season to remember for the Garden City girls’ tennis team this fall. The Trojans won the Conference IIB title with an undefeated regular season record, and now boast both the singles and doubles champions in Nassau County. 

Senior Nina Weise took home the singles title while senior Kayla Castellano and freshman Angelina Bravo captured the doubles championship, each winning in straight sets on a cold and windy afternoon at Eisenhower Park. 

“It’s been so much fun,” Wiese said of this Garden City team. “We have such a great team this year and it’s made playing every match that much more exciting.”

Wiese was the first of the Garden City trio to earn her county title as she put together a near flawless performance to knock off Kailin Gochna of North Shore 6-0, 6-0 in the finals. Wiese was a 6-1, 6-0 winner over Great Neck South’s Madison Lee in the semifinals earlier in the day. 

“I tried to take advantage of every point and just stay in control,” said Wiese. “It means everything, and I’m so excited to have won this and redeem myself from last year.”

Garden City head coach Crystal Boyd added:

“She’s such a smart player. She moves her opponent all over the court, and you can see how she sets up her shots, and disguises them well. She has every shot in her arsenal and it makes her very tough to play against.”

Wiese and Gochna qualified for the NYSPHSAA Individual Championships, as did Angel Walia of Herricks, who defeated Lee in the third-place match. 

The freshman/senior pairing of Bravo & Castellano won their semifinals in straight sets and had to wait a couple of hours for the championship to start. But the duo came out firing against the Manhasset pairing of Andrea & Lina Vases in the finals, taking home the county title with a 6-2, 6-4 victory. 

“There were a lot of long points and we just tried to stay in the rally but maintain our offensive position and make sure we stayed aggressive,” said Castellano. “We clicked from the very beginning. We know each other’s strengths and they work well together.”

Bravo added:

“I tried to poach when I could. Kayla was in some long rallies from the baseline so I had to find my spots to put the points away.”

“It’s unbelievable. Kayla has been trying this year after year, and she found someone who she messed with and who has a lot of talent,” said Boyd. “They were able to get it done. I think Angelina looks up to her like a big sister, and they really balance each other out.”

Both the Garden City and Manhasset doubles teams advanced to the State Championships, as did Syosset’s Diya Varma & Manami Wakazono, who beat their Brave teammates Stephanie Marcharet & Zia Mukherjee.