The Pioneer Athletic Conference girls doubles tournament championship may have set a record for smiles and laughter in a tournament final Wednesday.
It was a joyful occasion for the Spring-Ford girls tennis team in an all-Ram matchup of teammates turned opponents.
Seniors Mia Matriccino and Evelyn Mejia got the best of fellow seniors Chloe Moore and Alexis Luo, 6-2, 6-1, to take the doubles crown at Perkiomen Valley.
“This is not how I expected a PAC final to be like,” Mejia said amid a laughter-filled interview with the finalists. “But I’m glad it was this (matchup) instead of anyone else.”
Spring-Ford, guided by head coach Todd Reagan, won its fifth straight PAC team title this season.
It was the fourth career PAC championship for Matriccino, a three-time singles champion in her freshman, sophomore and junior years. She was positioned to become the first four-time PAC singles champion in league history but a college commitment kept her from competing in the singles postseason.
Doubles offered a welcome second chance to Matriccino, who recently committed to Loyola (Md.).
“I’m glad that I was able to do the doubles. It’s a change up (from singles) and was a lot of fun,” Matriccino said. “I enjoy playing doubles with Evelyn.”
Mariccino and Mejia were the Nos. 1 and 2 singles players in the Rams lineup the last two seasons so their doubles play is limited. Conversely, Moore and Luo spent the year as Spring-Ford’s No. 1 doubles team.
“We practiced a couple weeks ago and it just felt natural,” Matriccino said.
“Mia and I are already close so it’s not like playing with a new person. We communicate so well,” said Mejia.
Mejia joined sister Isabel as a PAC doubles champ. Isabel Mejia teamed with Riley Burke to win the 2019 title.
There was much less tension than a day earlier when Spring-Ford fell to Downingtown East in the DIstrict 1-3A team tournament, which translated to a well-played final ultimately won in straight sets by the top two in the Rams’ ladder.
“I played better because I was able to play more loosely, without as much pressure,” Moore said. “It was good practice for districts because we’ll be playing against better teams there, too.”
The District 1 doubles tournament will be held Oct. 19 and 21 at the Springfield YMCA.
Also representing the PAC at districts will be Methacton’s Lauren Montgomery and Anika Suresh, Methacton’s Claire Montgomery and Chelsea Lian and Perkiomen Valley’s Cindy Li and Emmy Flynn.
PAC Doubles Tournament
At Perkiomen Valley
Semifinals
Mia Matriccino/Evelyn Mejia (SF) def. Claire Montgomery/Chelsea Lian (Mt), 6-3, 6-1; Chloe Moore/Alexis Luo (SF) def. Lauren Montgomery/Anika Suresh (Mt), 7-6 (6), 6-3.
Final
Matriccino/Mejia (SF) def. Moore/Luo (SF), 6-2, 6-1.
Third place
L. Montgomery/Suresh (Mt) def. C. Montgomery/Lian, 7-6 (4), 6-0.
Fifth place playoff
Hope Thompson/Emily Vogel (UP) def. Vivona Xu/Elise Pham, 10-8; Cindy Li/Emmy Flynn (PV) def. Alexis Withers/Isabel Withers (OJR), 10-6.
