Santa Barbara High’s Nicole Buist and the San Marcos duo of Tate Jaeger/Kate Selby captured Channel League Individual titles on Tuesday in Santa Barbara.
Buist claimed the Channel League Singles championship with a win over Dos Pueblos’ Mel Mayo, while Jaeger and Selby earned the Doubles championship over Santa Barbara High’s Lucy Kronberg and Kate Hashbarger.
The Don and Royals pairing will now compete in the CIF-SS Individual Sectionals in November.
After cruising to a quarterfinal victory on Monday, Buist began her day on Tuesday by taking down San Marcos’ Leah Shenoda in straight sets in the semifinals.
The title showdown between Buist and Mayo, the two-time defending league champion, was a back-and-forth affair between two players who have been competing alongside and against each other for many years.
Buist came back from a 4-1 deficit and won five straight games to steal the first set, 6-4. She then followed that up with a seesaw 6-3 victory to clinch the league singles title.
With the victory, Buist remained undefeated in the Channel League this season without losing a single set in both singles and doubles play.
In the semifinals of the doubles bracket, Jaeger and Selby pulled out a 6-0, 6-4 victory over Zella Cassidy and Atria Husein to punch their ticket to the finals.
“The first set of the semifinals was an impressive display of net-play,” San Marcos head coach Emily Carver said. “Both teams have exceptional volleys and reaction time so this was excellent practice for future matches.”
The Royal duo dominated the championship match, dropping just one game en route to the 6-1, 6-0 win.
“The Royals had a strong hold over play throughout the match with deep groundstrokes,” Carver said. “Adjustments from the first match to the second helped Jaeger/Selby succeed.”
Dos Pueblos swept third-place finishes, as Isla Herrera claimed third in singles and the duo of Cassidy and Husein placed third in doubles action.