Within three weeks of the high school season finishing up, a slew of the county's best girls (and boys) will be competing in their second big USTA tournament this weekend in Indianapolis.
Area players garnered some solid seeds for the tournament, which opens up tomorrow morning. Below are the Oakland County players competing (in seeded, then alphabetical order) in the Girls and Boys 18- and 16-singles draws:

Girls 18
#13 Lexi Baylis (Clarkston) - won first match 6-0, 7-5
#21 Alex Najarian (Cranbrook) - won first match 6-1, 6-4
#31 Mollie Fox (Bloomfield Hills) - won first match 6-4, 6-1
Alex D'Ascenzo (Jewish Academy) - won first match 6-1, 6-0
Kerry Hu (Bloomfield Hills) - won first match 6-0, 6-4
Tiffany Huber (of West Bloomfield) - lost first match 1-6, 0-6
Christina Jordan (of West Bloomfield) - won first match 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
Dana Olsen (Clarkston) - lost first match 0-6, 0-6
Labina Petrovska (Seaholm) - lost first match 0-6, 1-6

Girls 16
#3 Dominique Vasile (of Oakland Twp.) - won first match 6-1, 6-2
#4 Marybeth Hurley (of Novi) - won first match 6-1, 6-1
#18 Sophia Abelson (of West Bloomfield) - won first match 6-1, 6-1
#23 Anna Short (Cranbrook) - won first match 6-2, 6-1
Eliza Brown (Jewish Academy) - won first match 6-0, 6-2
Hannah Cimpeanu (of West Bloomfield) - lost first match 2-6, 5-7
Halle Hyman (Adams) - won first match 6-1, 6-2
Claire Markley (Seaholm) - lost first match 6-7 (1), 1-6
Allison Motea (Cranbrook) - won first match 6-3, 6-2
Haley Mullins (Country Day) - lost first match 1-6, 6-3, 1-6
Marina Selenica (Country Day) -  won first match 6-1, 6-0
Isabella Spindler (Clarkston) - lost first match 3-6, 1-6
Alex Whall (Clarkston) - lost first match 0-6, 0-6

Boys 18
#2 Jack Murray (of Beverly Hills/Roeper) - won first match 6-0, 6-1
#15 Max Fliegner (Country Day) - won first match 6-1, 6-2
#20 Brett Forman (Troy) - won first match 6-1, 6-0
#24 Michael Dube' (Catholic Central) - won first match 6-1, 6-2
Alex Kim (Lakeland) - won first match 7-6 (10), 6-4
Tucker Massie (of Bloomfield Hills) - lost first match 1-6, 0-6
Rishi Patel (Country Day) - lost first match 1-6, 3-6
Gunnar Peery (Brother Rice) - won first match 6-7 (3), 6-3, 7-5
Max Shanbrom (Country Day) - lost first match 2-6, 5-7
Richard Zhang (Troy Athens) -  won first match 6-1, 6-2

Boys 16
#3 Connor Johnston (from Novi-Northville HS) - won first match 6-0, 6-1
#5 Tim Wang (Novi) - won first match 6-1, 6-1
#17 Kevin Rothstein (West Bloomfield) - won first match 6-1, 6-1
Justin Hyman (Adams) - won first match 6-1, 6-0
Noah Karoub (Country Day) - lost first match 3-6, 1-6
Koushik Kondapi (Novi) - lost first match 4-6, 2-6
Andre Liu (Novi) - lost first match 6-3, 5-7, 1-6
Chase Peery (Brother Rice) - lost first match 2-6, 2-6
Vinai Reddy (Troy) - lost to Sable in first match 2-6, 6-2, 3-6
Marc Sable (Cranbrook) - beat Reddy in first match 6-2, 2-6, 6-3

If you want to follow the action over the next several days, CLICK HERE, scroll down to the Draws tab and then when you see the "Choose and Event," select your division. Good luck players.

Back by popular demand - my 2013 girls tennis finals predictions. I filled out my bracket - including the winners of every match - in each of the four divisions. Now, I do not intend on exposing those picks here for the sake of the players, but I do intend on letting everyone know of my team predictions, as well as each my projected championship matches this weekend.
In case you are wondering how I did last year, you can view that blog HERE.

CLICK HERE TO READ MY STATE FINALS PREVIEW

DIVISION 1
Grosse Pointe South 25, Clarkston 23, Port Huron Northern 22, Farmington Hills Mercy 21, Northville 16, Troy 15, Ann Arbor Huron 14, West Bloomfield 13, Ann Arbor Pioneer 11, Traverse City Central 9, Midland Dow 9, Novi 8, Troy Athens 5, Utica 5, Saline 4, Hudsonville 2, Grand Blanc 2, Holland West-Ottawa 1, Utica Eisenhower 0, Kalamazoo Central 0, Dearborn 0, Livonia Franklin 0, Livonia Stevenson 0

Thoughts: Clarkston has the most talent at the tournament. Grosse Pointe South has the most depth. Port Huron Northern has the most balanced lineup. So who wins the title? As is the case in any sport where your last starter is as important as your first, I like South's chances to repeat. I've got the Blue Devils scoring at all flights, reaching the semifinals at six and winning 3-4 doubles. If this were a five-flight tournament, Clarkston wins running away. But the Wolves — if they want a chance at winning their second title in three years — will have to score more than the three points I see them getting out of their 2-3-4 doubles teams. If they can, then they have a shot. If PHN can score some points at 4-doubles, they have a chance as well. Mercy is a wild card. The Marlins are balanced, much like GPS, but may not be able to score enough points on Day 2 to make a push for a title.They may prove to be a spoiler to one or more of the top contending teams (see also, Troy, whose doubles teams are scary). I picked against Spindler-Pendelton (part 4) at 2-singles, though if it happened, it would be a great match. My best bet to win a state title: Paige Olsen and Alex Whall at 1-dubs. They've beaten everyone this year — including the two teams I've picked to win state titles in divisions 2-3. And they've beaten them each twice.

Predicted flight finalists
1S Davina Nguyen (Utica) d. Mary Hanna (Saline)
2S Isabella Spindler (Clarkston) d. Lizzie Brozovich (PHN)
3S Dana Olsen (Clarkston) d. Rae Brozovich (PHN)
4S Jessie Guindi (Mercy) d. Madie Flournoy (GPS)
1D Paige Olsen-Alex Whall (Clarkston) d. Fran Basha-Alexis Wirtz (PHN)
2D Hope Keating-Claire Keating (Troy) d. Jordan Hermiz-Elizabeth Sakorafis (Northville)
3D Kate Krueger-Angelica Kalogeridis (GPS) d. Christy Snyder-Julia Shaw (Mercy)
4D Morgane Flournoy-Kelly Beardslee (GPS) d. Shannon Williams-Libby Quinn (Northville)


DIVISION 2
Birmingham Marian 29, Birmingham Seaholm 27, Bloomfield Hills Andover 21, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern 18, Okemos 16, Mason 13, Bloomfield Hills Lahser 12, East Grand Rapids 12, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central 11, Portage Central 11, North Farmington 8, Battle Creek Lakeview 8, Grosse Pointe North 7, East Lansing 6, Richland Gull Lake 5, Holly 2, Fenton 2, SCS Lakeview 1, Riverview 0, Allen Park 0, Dearborn Heights Crestwood 0

Thoughts: Boy, where to begin. I've gone back and forth on who I think will win. And I would not be surprised one bit if Seaholm picks up an extra win or two, or Marian drops a match I did not predict, and the Maples win by a point. But as it stands, I just like Marian's draws much better. Seven seeds, none lower than a 3, including six 1 or 2 seeds, means the Mustangs should reach Day 2 in all seven. That's 21 points right there. I believe that where each team has an advantage over the other, seeding has come into play. Seaholm has tough draws at 2-singles and 3-doubles. Marian has great draws at those flights. Andover also has seven seeds, but four of them are 4-5 seeds, meaning they'll run into the 1-seed at those flights. The Barons should make their presence felt, but it would be tough for them to challenge the Maples and Mustangs. This, if it happens, will be the final match between Kerry Hu (Andover) and Mollie Fox (Lahser), as high school opponents. They are on track to face each other in the semifinals. Fox is the 1-seed, Hu the 4. They'll be teammates next year. Lahser has a good chance to finish in the top-10. The Knights will also play a key role in the head-to-head battle between Seaholm and Marian. Fox faces Marian's Elaine Apaza in the second round, while 2-seeded Meryl Reams is on the same half of the 4-singles draw as Seaholm's Rachel Fenberg. If she advances past Fenberg (or Forest Hills Northern's Sidney Whitfield), she may very well face Marian's Catherine Yaldoo in the final. 

Predicted flight finalists
1S Sara Remynse (Gull Lake) d. Mollie Fox (Lahser)
2S Emily Struble (Okemos) d. Lauren Dietz (Marian)
3S Claire Markley (Seaholm) d. Breann Lunghamer (Marian)
4S Catherine Yaldoo (Marian) d. Meryl Reams (Lahser)
1D Nancy Benda-Jackie Meier (Seaholm) d. Victoria Minzlaff-Shelby Moored (FHN)
2D Rachel Wilson-Laine Boitos (Seaholm) d. Tatyanna Dadabbo-Sally Thoresen (Marian)
3D Bianca Emde-Tatum Schwartz (Marian) d. Alana Gutman-Jenna Yousif (Andover)
4D Charlotte Garrison-Madison Lorenz (Andover) d. Lauren Benderoff-Sam Lareau (Seaholm)


DIVISION 3
Cranbrook-Kingswood 40, Country Day 24, Allegan 21, Holland Christian 18, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Eastern 18, St. Clair 14, Haslett 14, GR Catholic Central 13, GR South Christian 10, Spring Lake 10, DeWitt 6, Whitehall 5, Cadillac 3, Edwardsburg 2, Chelsea 2, Parma Western 2, Sturgis 1, BC Harper Creek 1, Armada 1, Trenton 0

Thoughts: Yes, I predicted Cranbrook to sweep the finals. I tried to talk myself out of it. I tried to find a chink in the Cranes' armor, but I couldn't. Alexandria Najarian is the best player in the state. Anna Short and Allison Motea have proven to be the best 2-3 singles combination in the state. Sarah Lipworth is a seasoned veteran playing 4-singles. The only possible threat — in my opinion — is Country Day's Madelyn Karoub at 2-singles. She's a smart player. But Short is the favorite. The seeding committee did what they could to derail a Cranbrook sweep of #1 seeds. Allegan is the 1-seed at #1 doubles, with Country Day's Jane Ziecik and Ellie Miller holding down the 2-seed. Cranbrook's Alissa Rowens and Meg Phyle are at #3. Talk about fuel. And at #2, the Cranes' Kendra Sweet and Christina Roualet are the 2-seed, behind Allegan. No losses, just a couple scores against common opponents  taken into consideration. Look for Cranbrook to win at 1-2 doubles. And their 3-4 doubles (Briana Letica-Holly Meers and Lauren Lanzon and Emily Harvey) are pretty much a lock to win state titles. So in the end, yes, I see a sweep on the horizon. 

Predicted flight finalists
1S Alexandria Najarian (Cranbrook) d. Sydney Liggins (GRCC)
2S Anna Short (Cranbrook) d. Madelyn Karoub (Country Day)
3S Allison Motea (Cranbrook) d. Haley Mullins (Country Day)
4S Sarah Lipworth (Cranbrook) d. Sarah Carroll (Country Day)
1D Alissa Rowens-Meg Phyle (Cranbrook) d. Christin Drozd-Kaycee Harness (Allegan)
2D Kendra Sweet-Christina Roualet (Cranbrook) d. Blake Day-Emmarie Gorby (Allegan)
3D Briana Letica-Holly Meers (Cranbrook) d. Taylor Orr-Carlie Vanklompenberg (Allegan)
4D Lauren Lanzon-Emily Harvey (Cranbrook) d. Saja Fadda-Mariah Chapin (GRFHE)


DIVISION 4
Sacred Heart 29, Grosse Ile 25, Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard 20, Williamston 18, Lansing Catholic Central 17, Traverse City St. Francis 16, Monroe St. Mary CC 15, Portland 14, Kalamazoo Christian 12, Grandville Calvin Christian 11, North Muskegon 9, GR Northpointe Christian 8, Jackson Lumen Christi 7, Liggett 5, Ludington 5, Kalamazoo Hackett 5, Harbor Springs 4, Saginaw Nouvel 3, Clarkston Everest Collegiate/WOLL 1, Niles Brandywine 1, Berrien Springs 0, Frankenmuth 0, Hemlock 0, Paw Paw 0

Thoughts: Sacred Heart is a perfect definition of a deep team. There is talent from top to bottom. And that bodes well in Division 4. The Gazelles are favored in 2-3-4 doubles, earning the top seed at each flight. If you look at some of their tournament results from the regular season —- particularly those against D4's other top teams — you'll see why. Sarah Spangler and Heidi Lemon (2-dubs) Kendall Lehmann and Hannah Gerard (3-dubs) and Elia Wilson and Gretchen Lemon (4-dubs) dominated the competition within the division. I see them all picking up state championships on Saturday in Kalamazoo. I also predicted a doubles sweep for Sacred Heart — with Kelsey Nagle and Emily Nash avenging an earlier-season loss to Williamston's Delaney Nikolai and Caitlin Chick in the finals. And don't think all the talent lies in doubles. The Gazelles' doubles lineup will put the team in a position to win a second straight state title, but Tyler Papazian, Abby Hildebrand, Teresa Walawender and Tate Lehmann will prove to be the difference.

Predicted flight finalists
1S Meika Ashby (K-Zoo Hackett) d. Colleen O'Brien (AA Gabriel Richard)
2S Anjali Sood (AA Gabriel Richard) d. Brianna Riley (Grosse Ile)
3S Audrey Bouma (K-Zoo Christian) d. Maddy Szuba (AA Gabriel Richard)
4S Alexandra Latala (Grosse Ile) d. Tate Lehmann (Sacred Heart)
1D Kelsey Nagle-Emily Nash (Sacred Heart) d. Delaney Nikolai-Caitlin Chick (Williamston)
2D Sarah Spangler-Heidi Lemon (Sacred Heart) d. Alex Carney-Katherine Kuzmiak (Grosse Ile)
3D Kendall Lehmann-Hannah Gerard (Sacred Heart) d. Kelli Bowes-Molly Huisingh (N. Muskegon)
4D Elia Wilson-Gretchen Lemon (Sacred Heart) d. Rose Tucker-Casey Guthrie (Grosse Ile) 

North Farmington's Maria Vicini (above) and
Groves' Mikayla Kazdan (below).
(The Oakland Press/JASON SCHMITT)

On Monday, North Farmington and Birmingham Groves set up what should be an exciting OAA White tennis tournament this Saturday. The two teams entered the match 6-0, with the regular season title on the line.
The Raiders won the match, 5-3, and should enter the tourney as the favorite. But Groves will have something to say come Saturday afternoon. On Monday, The two teams split in singles, with North winning at No. 1 (Arti Vaishnav beating Mikayla Kazdan in three sets) and No. 2 (Rachel Gringlas beating Shayna Brickman in straight sets. Claudia Fuderer and Katie Weitzel answered for the Falcons at Nos. 3-4.
North's doubles looked really good, as Sarah Tobin and Maria Vicini beat Kelly Greer and Kasey Rechter 6-2, 6-3 at No. 1 doubles. Tobin is quite a presence at the net and this team should have no problems come Saturday. Groves' Rayven Goodwin and Claire Nader needed three sets to win at No. 2 doubles, as did North's Shannon Kelly and Dania Abdulhamid at No. 4. Alyssa Cutcher and Ashley Sauerbrey won in straight sets at No. 3 for the Raiders. Kyra Cutcher missed the match due to an injury. So that was a nice win for North.

The seed meeting for the tournament is Thursday. The Raiders and Falcons should find themselves on the 1-2 seed lines at most flights. But Troy Athens and Rochester won't make things easy. There's still a lot of talent on the court for the Red Hawks and Falcons, too.

OAA Red tourney set to go
I know the coaches aren't thrilled about the OAA Red Tournament these days. With the amount of talent in this county, I understand the big prize (a state championship) is within reach of a couple of our schools. But this tournament is so loaded with individual and team talent, that I look forward to it each and every year. No league in the state can boast of this much talent. When you have a player like Kerry Hu (Andover) - who finished runner-up at the Division 2 state finals last year - as the No. 6 seed in the No. 1 singles draw, you know just how talented this league is.
The tournament will be held at three sites in Troy on Thursday. Clarkston finished the league season 6-0. Seaholm was 5-1. Andover and Troy were 3-3. West Bloomfield (2-3) and Lahser (1-4) have yet to play their final match. And Adams, which boasts a tremendous amount of talent at the top of its singles lineup, finished 0-6.
The featured draw is of course at No. 1 singles. Clarkston's Lexi Baylis is the top seed and will get a bye in the first round. In her half of the draw is the 4-seed (Raven Neely of West Bloomfield) and 5-seed (Labina Petrovska of Seaholm). Lahser's Mollie Fox is the 2-seed and will face Troy's Amanda Guo (#7) in her first match. The winner gets the winner of #3 Halle Hyman of Adams and Hu.
I'm also intrigued by the great No. 2 singles draw. Clarkston freshman Isabella Spindler has been fantastic this year and is the 1-seed. On the opposite end of the draw is West Bloomfield's Aerielle Pendleton, at #2. Spindler won the regular season matchup 6-4, 6-1. I'd like to see the rematch.
Clarkston's Dana Olsen and Seaholm's Claire Markley are 1-2 at No. 3 singles. Olsen beat Markley 6-1, 6-4 in their dual. And at No. 4 singles, Lahser's Meryl Reams got the nod for the top seed, with Clarkston's Katie Hubregsen opposite her at #2.
In doubles, Clarkston's Paige Olsen and Alex Whall have been the class of the entire state this season. They're #1 at No. 1 doubles and will be heavy favorites. On the 2-3 line, Seaholm's Nancy Benda and Jackie Meier are on a collision course with Troy's Kalie Collins and Brittany Friesen - for the right to get to the finals. That should be a good one.
Troy's 2-5 doubles teams all received #1 seeds. Hope and Claire Keating, Lillian Liang and Deepthi Devireddy, Katie Forche and Leena Penumalee, and JulieAnn Fava and Anna Balas are all on the top line. Seaholm is on the #2 line for all those flights.

KLAA Tourney set for Saturday
Novi will be hosting the KLAA Tournament this Saturday. The hosts will be one of the favorites - as they always are - along with Northville. The Mustangs handed the Wildcats their only league loss of the season, 7-2. Northville swept the singles competition that day and took three of five doubles flights. Novi's Caitlin O'Brien and Amy Zhou (at No. 1 doubles) and Rebecca Chen and Asawari Kanitkar (at No. 3 doubles) picked up the team's lone wins.
Walled Lake Northern finished a perfect 5-0 in the KLAA North Division, with Lakeland finishing runner-up at 4-1. Walled Lake Western was third (3-2), followed by Walled Lake Central (2-3), Kettering and Mott (both 0-4).

Marian, Mercy the favorites at the CHSL tourney Saturday
The Mustangs - ranked No. 1 in the latest Division 2 state rankings - and Mercy - No. 4 in the latest D-1 rankings - will most likely battle it out for the league championship Saturday. Marian beat Mercy 5-3 during the regular season, but there have been some lineup changes since then. Both teams earned three top seeds, with Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard and Sacred Heart getting one each. Jessie Guindi's move to the singles lineup strengthened the Marlins up top. But it's yet to be seen how that will affect the doubles matchups - which had three 3-setters in their dual match against Marian.

Farmington on top of the OAA Blue
The Falcons ran the gauntlet of the OAA Blue and will be the clear favorites at Saturday's league tournament, being hosted by Southfield. The matches will be played at Birmingham Groves, Seaholm and Southfield-Lathrup.
Farmington finished unbeaten in league play. Avondale, Royal Oak and Southfield - in that order - finished behind the Falcons. Though the seed meeting will not be held until Thursday night, Southfield's Lauren Hughes will be the top seed at No. 1 singles. The senior is a three-time defending league champion.

UPDATE: Holly wins Flint Metro League Tournament
Here are the results of Tuesday's league tournament:

Flint Metro League Tournament

TEAM SCORES — Holly 61, Fenton 49, Lapeer West 43, Clio 38, Swartz Creek 31, Lapeer East 27, Ortonville-Brandon 26, Flint Kearsley 13

CHAMPIONSHIP SINGLES — 1. Madison Ballard (F) d. Natalie Clink (H) 6-2, 6-1; 2. Victoria Skubik (H) d. MacKenzie Welker (LW) 6-3, 6-2; 3. Blake Clements (LW) d. Alex Knight (H) 6-0, 7-5; 4. Jenna Pepper (H) d. Josie Foguth (F) 6-3, 6-1

CHAMPIONSHIP DOUBLES — 1. Carley Postma-Sydney Renehan (H) d. Lilly DuBois-Emily McIntosh (F) 7-5, 7-5; 2. Ashley Bearden-Hanna Horton (F) d. Daryl Spurgeon-Haley Crimmins (H) 6-4, 3-6, 6-2; 3. Alahah Rau-Leah Moller (H) d. Lindsey Zietz-Madaleine Paul (C) 6-2, 6-0; 4. Katherine Skubik-Claire Young (H) d. Sylee Kiran-Katie Kurycz (F) 6-4, 6-4

FINAL LEAGUE STANDINGS (Regular season and tournament combined): 1. Holly; 2. Fenton; 3. Lapeer West; 4. Clio; 5. Lapeer East; 6. Swartz Creek; 7. Ortonville-Brandon; 8. Flint Kearsley