Friday, October 16, 2009

By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer

EDGEWATER – Ramapo sophomore Amanda Muliawan has played tennis since she was big enough to hold a racket. She quickly proved herself to be one of New Jersey’s best players after advancing to the semifinals in the state singles tournament as a freshman, with that being her only loss of the season. Her success on the high school court and her prospects as a Division 1 player down the road forced Muliwan to make a tough decision.

Does she play strictly a USTA schedule this fall or rejoin a Ramapo team that had lost four senior starters from 2008? After thinking long and hard throughout the summer about that decision, Muliawan chose to come back and help Ramapo repeat as section champs.

Having played all over the country for years, Muliawan has been in pressure situations before. But for all the tennis she has seen and played, she was never in a pressure situation like she was on Friday. Facing another of the state’s top players in Tenafly’s Akiko Okuda at first singles, Muliawan was not just playing for herself. She was playing for her team, her school, and to justify to herself the reason she decided to come back and put on a Ramapo uniform this year.

Muliawan ended a string of breaks of serve by breaking Okuda, then held her own serve to close out a 6-4, 6-4 win that allowed second-seeded Ramapo to knock off top-seeded and previously undefeated Tenafly, 3-2, and repeat as North 1, Group 3 state section champion at Binghamton Racquet Club in Edgewater.

“This win is really unbelievable. I couldn’t be happier than I am right now for our kids,” said Ramapo head coach Kim Marchese, who recorded his 500th career victory with in the North 1, Group 3 semifinal win over Northern Valley/Demarest. “We didn’t really know where we stood early in the season, but to beat a very good Demarest team without our second singles player and then come here and beat an excellent Tenafly team is a great accomplishment for us.”

For three years, Tenafly has had an automatic point at second singles from junior Courtney Lee. She has never lost in a team match during her three years at second singles, and yesterday was more of the same. Lee dominated the baseline winning the final 10 games of 6-1, 6-0 victory over Katie Nerlino.

The Lady Tigers also got a point at first doubles from one of the state’s top doubles tandems, Ada Lin and Anya Sahaydachny. They poached effectively at the net and broke serve in the middle of both sets to score a 6-3, 6-2 win that gave Tenafly a 2-0 lead.

That left Ramapo in the predicament of having to win all three matches left on the court, a tall order against a Tenafly team that had allowed just two points in dual matches the entire season. But what it also did was put the Green Raiders in the rare position to take chances because they had nothing to lose.

Ramapo got on the board first at second doubles. Christina Fusilli and Allison Nolte broke serve early in the second set and had to hold on until the very end for a 6-1, 6-4 win over Danielle Eagan and Jordana Bloom.

As Fusilli and Bloom walked off the court victorious, Ramapo’s Ashley Garbaccio received a much-needed boost of energy at third singles. She ripped off four straight games in the second set to take a 4-1 lead on her way to a 6-4, 6-2 win over Rachel Gerber that tied the match at 2.

“When I saw that our second doubles won, I knew we still had a chance,” said Garbaccio. “I knew my match could be the difference and I had to step up in crunch time. It was an awesome position to be in, but it was nerve-wracking as well. I just had to keep my cool, keep the ball in the court, and try to force my opponent into making a mistake.”

Muliawan was up a set and up 3-2 in the second against Okuda when both players turned up their games a few notches. After battling through seven deuces, Okuda broke Muliawan to tie the set at 3. The two traded breaks when Muliawan glanced up at the Binghamton Racquet Club lobby above her and saw her whole team cheering her on. It was only then when she realized just what was at stake.

“When everyone was looking back at me, I knew it was all down to my match,” said Muliawan. “I told coach (Marchese) that I didn’t want to know where everyone else was in their matches. Obviously, I wanted them to win and I felt confident. I just wanted to keep my focus on doing what I had to do for the time being.”

Both Muliawan and Okuda slugged it out from the baseline, trading one fantastic shot for another and neither player waivered from her game plan. Muliawan just had one more bullet in the chamber than the talented Okuda. Muliawan used a big inside-out forehand that clipped the line on her way to a break in the ninth game and a 5-4 lead. She then held in the 10th and her teammates mobbed her as Ramapo pulled off the mild upset.

“My first serve was erratic all game, so I made more of an effort to just get my first serve in,” said Muliawan. “I try to jump on my opponents and get a break early. I did that in the first set, but (Okuda) really started to hit some good shots towards the end of the first set. From there on, I knew it was going to be a tough match. I just tried to keep attacking as much as I could when I had an opening.”

Ramapo will have as tough a road as any team remaining in the state tournament to get to the Tournament of Champions. To win the Group 3 title, they will have to face one of the state’s best teams in Millburn. Then, if they get past that match, the Raiders must face the winner of perennial powers Holmdel and Moorestown. All Group semifinals and finals will take place on Wednesday at Mercer County Park in West Windsor.

Regardless of how that turns out, Ramapo’s victory allows the close-knit unit to be together as a team for at least few more days. Which, at this time of the season, is as important as repeating as section champs.

“I am glad I made the decision I made because I love the girls on this team and I love playing for Ramapo,” said Muliawan. “I love the pressure, I always have. But it’s always been pressure I put on myself. Now I was playing for this team. Knowing how close we are and that all the girls would support me whether I won or lost really helped me mentally in the second set. This is an amazing feeling to be able to do this together. We have nothing to lose now and we believe in ourselves that we can go even further.”

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