Lake Forest College handball players competed in the Illinois Handball Association Doubles Tournament over the weekend. Runner-up finishes in the Open Doubles brackets were turned in by seniors Victor Perez and Nikolai Nahorniak on the men's side and junior Maria Dugas and freshman Sandy Ng on the women's.
Perez and Nahorniak won 21-4, 21-11 in the quarterfinals and 21-15, 21-13 in the semifinals to reach the championship, where they were defeated 21-16, 21-15 by Oscar Zamora and Suhn Lee, a 2010 graduate of the College. Dugas and Ng posted a 21-6, 21-0 victory in the quarterfinals and a 21-10, 21-1 triumph in the semifinals before falling 21-11, 21-20 to Terry Mehilos and 2004 graduate Megan Mehilos.
Seniors Sarah Brusig and Nicole Moser reached the semifinals of the Open Division before also falling to the Mehilos tandem.
Senior Pat Jarvis teamed with sophomore Isaac Acosta for a 21-3 semifinal win and 21-18, 21-10 championship match victory in the Men's A Division.
All five doubles teams in the women's B Division were from Lake Forest. Freshmen Nicole Stroner and Aimee Fadden won their first round match 21-2, 21-5 before falling to senior Emma Swanson and junior Ann Szutenbach in the semifinals. Senior Bianca Greene and freshman Samantha Zender prevailed 21-7, 21-16 in the semifinals and 21-14, 21-13 over Swanson and Szutenbach in the final.
Both Forester Men's B doubles teams won their first match. Sophomores Derrick Contreras and Clark Creasey had a bye through the round of 16 and posted a 21-14, 19-21, 11-2 victory in the quarterfinals. They fell 21-11, 21-17 to the eventual champions in the semifinals. Fellow sophomores Justin Novak and Geoff Douglas came from behind for a 14-21, 21-12, 11-6 triumph in the round of 16 before falling 21-10, 21-13 to the eventual runners-up in the quarterfinals.
The final tournament on the team's 2010-11 schedule is the United States Handball Intercollegiate Handball Association Collegiate National Championships at Arizona State University. The Foresters are the two-time defending champions in all three team divisions (men, women, combined). Competition will begin on Wednesday, February 23 and continue through Sunday, February 27.