Monache, Porterville dominate EYL tennis tournament

Not too surprisingly, Friday and Saturday’s East Yosemite League tennis tournament was dominated by the teams who finished with the top two records of the regular season — No. 1 Monache (12-0) and No. 2 Porterville (8-4).

Friday’s pool play determined the four semifinalists of both singles and doubles groups, which reconvened Saturday morning at Porterville High.

Though the Panthers once again took a backseat to a Marauders team enjoying one of its better years in school history, this time there’s consolation in the fact that Porterville will be sending just as many players to the CIF Central Section individual and doubles tournament next Saturday in Bakersfield.

As expected, Monache’s No. 1 singles player, Goldie Rayani, who swept through the EYL undefeated, claimed the tournament’s top spot over Porterville’s Chai Yang in the finals.

What wasn’t so predictable is the manner in which Rayani did so — losing his first set, 6-1, to Yang — his first dropped set all season.

In their first match on April 12, Rayani had little trouble defeating Yang, 6-2, 6-0, and in their second go-around on May 5, Yang was able to take a few more games, but still lost, 6-2, 6-3.

On Saturday, Yang played like the one with nothing to lose, taking the first set and opening a lead in the second until Rayani tied him up at 4-all.

“That was the best Chai had played Goldie all year,” Porterville coach Kurt Nielsen said. “I think Goldie was a little nervous because he was expected to be champion and he had all the pressure.”

When Yang saw Rayani’s momentum begin to build, the pressure switched to the other side of the net.

“I think at that 4-4 tie, it tightened for Chai and we saw the Goldie we’ve been seeing all year,” Nielsen said.

Rayani went on to take the next eight points to win 1-6, 6-4, 6-0 for the title.

It was a different story in the third-place match between Monache’s No. 2 Drexler Alcantara and Porterville’s No. 2 Patrick Lewis.

Lewis, a sophomore, had beaten Alcantara both times in their previous meeting, most recently 6-3, 7-5 on May 5, but Alcantara turned the tables with a 6-1, 6-4 victory.

In doubles play, Monache’s tandem of Brandon Nucum and Matt Ecobiza once again put on a clinic on how to win close, three-set matches, defeating Cesar Chavez’s duo, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4, in the semifinals. Porterville’s doubles team of Johnny Nieto and Vince Catalina met the Marauders in the finals by taking out Tulare Western’s combo, 6-4, 6-2.

The last time these two pairs met, Nucum and Ecobiza pulled out a thrilling, three-set victory over Nieto and Catalina in their first EYL dual. But far less dramatics were needed this time as Nucum and Ecobiza won in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4.

Granite Hills’ duo of DJ Tiernan and Johnny Yang fell to Porterville’s duo in Friday’s round and none of the Grizzlies’ singles made it to the semifinals. Granite, however, will likely head to Valley in Division IV.