Arroyo Grande’s Delanie Dunkle falls in Round-of-16 in CIF tennis sectionals

Delanie Dunkle’s CIF-Southern Section individual tennis sectionals run came to an end in the Round of 16 on Wednesday at the Seal Beach Tennis Center. The Arroyo Grande High School sophomore fell to Rachel Wagner of Campbell High School, 4-6, 6-7 (5-7).

“I just started off really slow,” Dunkle said. “I think it was fatigue from the last couple weeks of just going, going, going.”

Dunkle, who played in a USTA National Selection Tournament in Aptos last weekend, fell into a 1-5 hole in the first set and wasn’t able to recover. In the second set, Dunkle said she tried to play more conservatively against the sophomore from Calabasas and was able to grab a 5-4 lead. But a late break sent it to a tiebreaker, where Wagner edged out the win to advance.

“To make it that far as a sophomore is pretty terrific,” Arroyo Grande coach Lori Hollister said.

Dunkle, who is listed as a 5-star recruit by the Tennis Recruiting Network, defeated Cate High’s Grace Duss (6-0, 6-1) in the second round and West Ranch’s Jordyn McBride (6-1, 6-0) in the third round after a first-round bye. Her performance in those matches earned her a bye in the Round of 32.

“This season was super fun,” Dunkle said. “All my coaches and teammates and teachers were really supportive.”

Dunkle ends her season with a 35-4 record and a PAC 8 singles title.

This story was originally published November 30, 2016 at 7:02 PM with the headline "Arroyo Grande’s Delanie Dunkle falls in Round-of-16 in CIF tennis sectionals."