Hilliard — For the first time in their careers, Bishop Watterson’s Julia Caravella and Chloe McClymont entered the postseason as a doubles team rather than competing in singles.
From their first match together against Notre Dame Academy to winning the Marysville Tournament, it was a pairing that gelled over time. That progress culminated in their first postseason title together and a trip to districts.
On Saturday, the duo defeated Dublin Jerome’s Ally Yang and Gowri Nair in straight sets, 7–6 (7–2), 6–2, to capture the Hilliard Bradley sectional title and advance to next week’s district tournament at Upper Arlington.
Switching from singles to doubles was a big adjustment for both players, but the move has paid off as they advance to districts.
“It is both easier and harder,” Caravella said. ‘It is easier because I have someone who can get me out of my head, but harder because I am used to relying on myself.”
“There are balls that you think you are going to get, but then your partner takes them,” McClymont laughed. “I feel doubles is a great part of tennis because it takes teamwork and I have fun doing it.”
In the opening set, Caravella and McClymont trailed 4–2 after a mix of inconsistent execution and better play from Yang and Nair. Frustrated but determined, they regrouped and rattled off three straight games to seize a 5–4 lead.
After failing to close out the set on two earlier chances, and then dropping the first point of the tiebreak, Caravella and McClymont responded with six straight points, pulling away for a 7–2 tiebreak win to claim the first set 7–6 (7–2).
Pulling out a first set victory was huge for the duo, who feel that it wasn’t just winning a set, but simply an achievement in itself.
“It’s such an achievement to get out of your head when you’re stuck in it,” McClymont said. Caravella agreed, adding, “It feels like there are no more obstacles once you’ve already pushed past them all.”
With the mental hurdles behind them, McClymont and Caravella jumped out by winning four of the first five games in the second set and cruised to a 6–2 win, completing the straight-sets sweep to capture the sectional championship.
Next up for the duo is Upper Arlington for the district tournament and an opportunity at the state tournament. “We obviously want to go to states,” the pair agreed.
Caravella added that she hopes they can have fun together while giving their best effort. McClymont concluded, “We’ll play our best tennis and focus on reaching state, that’s our goal. We really want to go and finish the season strong.”
Bradley Sectional Results
In the third-place doubles match, Bishop Watterson’s Francie Ciesinski and Dory Scharfenberger defeated Dublin Jerome’s Nainika Sahai and Dhruthi Pyla.
Olentangy Liberty’s Sophia Ferritto defeated Hilliard Bradley’s Shriya Reddy to win the singles championship, while Liberty’s Charvi Ramakkagari took down Jerome’s Anika Kulkarni to take third place in singles.
All of Saturday’s doubles and singles players advanced to next week’s district tournament at Upper Arlington.
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