Sectionals champs Ekim Buyuk and Diana King made it all the way to the State finals this month, but were outplayed by Edgemont’s Tomo Iwasaki and Alexa Goldberg, 6-3, 6-3.

 

By Melanie Cane

Sectionals champs Ekim Buyuk and Diana King made it all the way to the State finals this month, but were outplayed by Edgemont’s Tomo Iwasaki and Alexa Goldberg, 6-3, 6-3.

 

While the Rye Neck juniors were disappointed that they couldn’t pull out the win, King said, “Ekim and I never gave up during the hard-fought match, but Tomo and Alexa made fewer mistakes and finished off more points first.”

 

Meanwhile, the dynamic duo is sanguine about their chances of winning both the Sectional and State titles next year.

 

Coach Mark Canno said, “I’m so proud of Diana and Ekim for working so hard and playing their best all season. They were the first Rye Neck team to make it to States, which is a great accomplishment in itself.”

 

After a first-round bye at States, Buyuk and King beat the No. 2 team from Long Island without being challenged. The semifinal was a rematch of their sectional championship match against the top team from Eastchester, whom they had defeated 6-3, 6-2 a week earlier. Buyuk and King played flawlessly in the first set and won 6-1. They struggled a bit in the second set, but with clutch serving and great returns, won the tiebreaker 7-4. 

 

They girls had a good run and can’t wait to defend their Sectional title and bring home the State cup next year.