Two rounds in, it was clear that the CIF-Southern Section Division 4 girls tennis final was going to decided by razor-thin margins.

Joel Perttula brought his team in for a huddle.

“Fight for every game,” the Oaks Christian coach reminded his team. “Every game is going to count.”

But not even Perttula was ready for just how tight the match would be.

Oaks Christian and Agoura’s all-Marmonte League final tied 9-9 on sets and 72-72 on games after regulation on Wednesday, Nov. 19, at the University of Redlands.

“Which was kind of a miracle in itself,” Perttula said. “It just doesn’t happen.”

Oaks Christian eventually prevailed 10-8 on a rare round-robin tiebreaker round to capture the program’s first sectional title.

After surviving a match point, the No. 2 doubles team of junior Hannah Huang and junior Elise Rankin delivered the decisive point for the Lions.

“We rushed the court,” Perttula said. “It was pretty amazing.”

Oaks Christian junior Ellie Lin swept at No. 1 singles, 6-3, 6-1, 6-2, and swept her three round-robin tiebreakers, 7-5, 7-1, 7-5.

“Ellie really carried us,” Perttula said.

Veorah Feddanich, Lyla Haiat and Alisa Tran won two of three singles sets each as Agoura won six of nine singles sets.  

“It was a nailbiter,” said Agoura coach Mariana Sullivan. “We were very close.”

It was the closest CIF-SS final in girls tennis history. According to the CIF-SS record book, it was the first time the round-robin tiebreaker was needed in a girls tennis final.

Brentwood edged San Marino 12-6 on the round-robin tiebreaker after a 9-9, 75-75 tie in the 2009 Division II boys tennis final.

Agoura led 7-5 after the second round of play and inched closer when the No. 2 doubles team of Nola Rose and Grace Hennessey delivered a 6-4 win over the Lions’ No. 1 team.

“We were ready for it,” Sullivan said. “We were so prepared. It really could have gone either way.”

After regulation, neither team was in good spirits.

“That was a little demoralizing,” Sullivan said. “We had a super advantage at the end of the second round.”

Said Perttula, “The girls felt like we lost.”

The 72-72 knot on games meant both teams resumed play, with a round-robin series of 18 tiebreakers.

“When that news came in, I felt we had a second chance,” Perttula said. “That created a sign of life.”

Fourth-seeded Oaks Christian (13-6) defeated La Serna, San Dimas, Dana Hills, and Pasadena Poly to reach its first sectional final.

In also reaching its first sectional final, Agoura (13-9-1) defeated West Torrance, Geffen Academy, Marymount and Torrance.

But the third- and fourth-place teams from the Marmonte League were forced to wait five days for their final, as rain postponed the match three times.

“That was really tough,” Sullivan said. “I kept thinking, ‘We’re all in the same boat.’ ”

Calabasas wins Division 2 title

Doubles teams lifted the Calabasas High girls tennis team to a long-awaited CIF-SS championship on Wednesday, Nov. 19, at the University of Redlands.

The doubles teams of Giana Mucci-Emma Penev and Charli Kaaya-Sophia Loizu swept as the Coyotes grabbed eight of the nine doubles sets in a 12-6 win over Harvard-Westlake in the CIF-SS Division 2 final.

Alena Koltsova swept three sets at No. 1 singles as the Marmonte League champions won their sixth sectional title and first since the 2004 Division 1 title.

The Coyotes had dropped finals the previous two seasons, falling in Division 2 to Laguna Beach 10-8 in 2023 and Division 1 to Westlake 10-8 in 2024.

“The third time was the charm,” said Calabasas coach Chriss Rodriguez. “That made it that much more special.”

Mucci delivered an ace on the decisive point as Mucci-Penev came from 3-0 down to deliver the clinching moment.

“Giana is the glue of the team,” Rodriguez said. “She’s been that team player since her freshman year. She’s stood out as a senior for her teamwork. She’s undefeated for a reason.”

Rodriguez said the five-day weather delay “prolonged that feeling of the finish line.”

“That was hard,” Rodriguez said. “We didn’t get to practice, obviously, because of the rain and Alena developed a cold, so she wasn’t 100%.”

Four-seeded Calabasas (18-1) defeated Temecula Valley, Tesoro, Chadwick and top-seeded Irvine-Woodbridge along the way to the program’s 10th sectional final.

Joe Curley is a staff writer for The Star. He can be reached at joe.curley@vcstar.com. For more coverage, follow @vcspreps on Twitter/X, Instagram/Threads, Facebook and Bluesky.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Oaks Christian edges Agoura in closest tennis final in CIF-SS history