The Two-Time Undefeated (47-0) GHSA Class 5A Girls’ State Tennis Champions (2017, 2018) — Chamblee Lady Bulldogs
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Chamblee Girls Tennis Wins State Title with Thriller Victory
Chamblee Girls Win Against Kell in Close 3-2 while watching Marathon 4.25 Hour Match on pins and Needles
Article below credited to DeKalb Athletics Sports Media and Mark Brock
Lady Bulldogs Win Thriller to Repeat as Class 5A State Champs!
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A four-hour singles match decided the Class 5A Girls’ State Championship as Grace Pietkiewicz pulls out three-set marathon to clinch the Chamblee Lady Bulldogs second consecutive state championship at the Rome Tennis Center at Berry College on Saturday.
The final at No. 2 singles was 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 as Pietkiewicz wrapped up her junior campaign at 16-1.
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Chamblee had jumped out to the early 2-0 lead with wins at No. 1 doubles and No. 3 singles. Senior Olena Bulikha and junior Madeline Meer picked up the first point with a 6-3, 6-0 victory over Kell’s Alex Rapplean and Annabelle Colmenares to finish undefeated on the season at 11-0.
Freshman Neena Katauskas won her first set at No. 3 singles easily 6-0 but had to rally from a 3-1 deficit in the second set to win 6-3 for the second point. Katauskas finished the season a perfect 15-0 in singles play.
The Longhorns (18-4) battled back from the 2-0 deficit to tie the match as 2-2 with wins at No. 1 singles by Nicole Abel 6-4,6-0 over Chamblee’s Madison Trinh (11-3) and at No. 2 doubles by Abby Johnson and Samantha Goss 6-2, 7-6 (tiebreaker) over Chamblee’s Emilya Ershtein and Lila David (2-3).
The victory for Coach Larisa Tulchinsky’s Chamblee squad wrapped up a 22-0 record on the season and kept alive their consecutive match win streak at 47 during their two-peat. Senior Olena Bulikha was forced into doubles after an early season ankle injury and ends her career without a loss with a 56-0 record in singles and 13-0 in doubles this spring.
Chamblee became just the second DeKalb girls’ team to win back-to-back state championships since Dunwoody’s 1980 and 1981 state titles. The victory was DeKalb’s sixth state title in girls’ tennis and extended the county’s state title streak to 18 years with at least one title.
