By Sue DePassio
C & G Sports Writer

DETROIT — Every year, Grosse Pointe South’s girls tennis team gets close to its ultimate goal: a state championship.

The last time the girls played, in fall 2006, the Blue Devils finished fourth at the state tournament, and they were runners-up in 2002 and 2005.

This year, everyone is working hard to make South the best team in the state.

“Our No. 1 goal is to win a state title,” coach Mark Sobieralski said.

The team had already clinched the Macomb Area Conference Red Division championship at press time, finishing 4-0, and was 5-0 overall. To top it off, the Blue Devils had earned No. 1 ranking by the Michigan High School Tennis Coaches Association.

There are several reasons why the Blue Devils have had so much success over the years; South has claimed more state championships (Class A) than any other school with 11, the last coming in 1986.

The most obvious reason being the abundance of talent due to the sport’s popularity at all three local schools, North and University Liggett included.

Not to be overlooked in South’s case, however, is the stability of the program over the past decade or so.

Between Sobieralski’s 15 years at the helm and his ability to motivate his players to remain active in the offseason, the Blue Devils are usually primed when it matters most.

“We’ve got the kids playing all the time,” Sobieralski said. “I run groups for them and make sure they play tournaments. We’ve had continuity in the coaching. We’ve got a system in place.”

That system is why South tennis is always in contention at the highest level of competition.

“Nobody wants to lose,” Sobieralski said. “The challenge is (that) nobody wants to lose their flight at states.”

Top to bottom, the Blue Devils are solid throughout their lineup.

With their No. 1, 2 and 3 singles players and No. 4 doubles team all undefeated — boasting 18-0 records at press time — Sobieralski thinks South’s unbeatable lineup will give it an advantage over other programs as the state tournament gets under way.

“We’ve lost very few individual matches,” Sobieralski said about South’s performance so far. “We’ve got horses at every individual flight.”

Despite all the talent, the Blue Devils know they have to peak at the right time to achieve the state title they crave.

Senior captain Mary-Kate Hayden said players have to be on top of every aspect of their game as the state tournament approaches and the competition stiffens. Once regionals begin (May 16), records are tossed aside and a new seasons begins.

“We have to go into states with the mentality that we didn’t win one match the entire season,” Hayden said. “Everyone plays differently at states. The whole entire season starts over and ends at states.”

To help them prepare for the rigors of the state tournament, the Blue Devils will slug it out against some of the top teams in the state in a May 8 quad at Elworthy. Teams expected to serve it up in the quad are Ann Arbor Huron (ranked No. 8 in D-1), Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood (ranked No. 1 in D-3) and Beverly Hills Detroit Country Day (ranked No. 2 in D-3).

Sobieralski knows South needs every possible test to measure up against the other talented squads before the May 30 state finals.

“We’re fighting for it every year,” Sobieralski said. “I’m just fired up. I think we’re all excited. We can’t wait to get up there to compete.”

“We’ve been fighting to win states since we were freshmen,” Hayden said. “We’ve always wanted to win states. This is it. We’ve spent all these weekends away and played so hard; we want to make it count for something.”

The Blue Devils in search of that elusive Division 1 title are senior Angela Chupa (No. 1 singles), sophomore Mary Chupa (No. 2 singles), freshman Carolyn Chupa (No. 3 singles) and junior Sarah VanWalleghem (No. 4 singles).

The doubles teams are Hayden and senior Melanie Capuano (No. 1), senior Victoria Grams and junior Lizzie Hyde (No. 2), senior Kate Brennan and freshman Julie Wittwer (No. 3), senior Molly Lynch and junior Stephanie Skall (No. 4), and sophomores Emily Lynch and Carla Schmidt (No. 5).

You can reach Sports Writer Sue DePassio at sdepassio@candgnews.com or at (586) 279-1107.