Bethel Park girls tennis, top player Cami Fisher celebrate strong season

By: Ray Fisher
Saturday, November 16, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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It was a whirlwind of a season for Cami Fisher, Bethel Park’s sophomore tennis whiz.

“I was really happy with my performance this season,” Fisher said. “I had a few goals that I wanted to accomplish at the beginning of the year, and I was able to achieve those.”

Fisher won the section championship, qualified for the PIAA Class 3A tournament with a third-place finish at WPIALs and saw her season end in the first round of the PIAA playoffs.

Fisher & Co. also advanced to the PIAA team tournament by finishing as the WPIAL 3A runner-up. The Black Hawks rolled past District 10 champion Fairview, 4-1, in the first round at Westwood Raquet Club in Erie.

“Our team played very well,” Fisher said. “We all battled in our matches and motivated each other to really push through.”

Fisher, sophomore Mackenzie Smock and senior Julia Gobbie won the three singles matches. Cassie Sierka, a sophomore, and Keira Ross, a junior, were victorious at first doubles; seniors Amelia Lancet and Sara Walters lost at second doubles.

“Everyone gave their best and it was a true team effort,” Smock said after the match. “It’s exciting to still be playing together since we started playing at Glen Creek when we were little.

“We played really hard throughout the WPIAL tournament, and it’s great we came in second in such a competitive (tournament).”

The Black Hawks lost to District 1 runner-up Council Rock South, 3-0, in the PIAA quarterfinals to close out their season with a 16-3 record.

Fisher, seeded No. 1, and Smock, at No. 4, represented the Bethel Park at the section singles qualifier, with Fisher topping Mt. Lebanon junior and No. 2 seed Jackie Tang, 6-4, 6-0, in the championship round.

Smock advanced to the semifinals where she lost a 7-5, 6-3 decision to Fisher. Smock then won her consolation-round match over Tang.

At WPIALs, Fisher rolled into the semifinals by defeating a pair of freshmen, No. 14 Bayleigh Vilage from Norwin, 10-1, and No. 6 Cassandra Lapina from Pine-Richland, 10-3.

Fisher, who was seeded third, lost to Penn-Trafford junior and No. 2 seed Amelia Williams, 6-2, 6-3, in the semifinal round. The Bethel Park underclassman qualified for the PIAA tournament with a 6-2, 6-1 victory against Shady Side Academy freshman Brooke Henderson, the fifth seed, in the third-place match.

Williams lost to Shady Side Academy sophomore and No. 1 seed Meriwether McCargo, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (5), in the championship match.

Smock beat junior and No. 8 seed Michelle Yan of Franklin Regional, 11-9, in the first round but lost to McCargo, 10-4, in the quarterfinals.

Fisher faced Central Bucks South senior Grace Piro in the PIAA playoffs. Piro, the District 1 champion, won 6-3, 6-3 in the first round.

Fisher took an impressive 24-1 record into the PIAA championships.

Bethel Park also qualified for the PIAA Class 3A team tournament by finishing second in the WPIAL playoffs. No. 1 Mt. Lebanon edged the defending champions, 3-2, in the finals at Washington & Jefferson.

Fisher and Gobbie were victorious for the No. 3 Black Hawks against Mt. Lebanon at first and third singles.

“I’m really proud of our tennis team’s performance this season,” Fisher said. “I think everyone was a little cautious before the season because we lost three starting players last season, and we didn’t know how we would perform.

“But everyone stepped up and played a gigantic role in this season’s enormous success.”

Fisher defeated Tang, 6-2, 6-2, in the No. 1 singles match while Gobbie outlasted senior Elena Tatel, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4, at No. 3 singles.

“Our match was a close one,” Gobbie said, “and it’s upsetting we fell short. But I’m proud of us for making it to the championship. We all played well. Mt. Lebanon is just tough.

“I’m super proud of our tennis team. We had high standards coming into the season after our amazing run last year, and we didn’t think we would make it very far after losing some important seniors. However, we had a great run in the WPIAL playoffs, and I couldn’t be more proud of what we accomplished this year.”

Mt. Lebanon won at first and second doubles against the Black Hawks, then junior Michelle Yang provided her team with the margin of victory with a 6-2, 7-5 victory against Smock.

In previous WPIAL rounds, Bethel Park defeated No. 14 Thomas Jefferson, 4-1, No. 11 Peters Township, 4-1, and No. 2 Shady Side Academy, 3-2, to qualify for the championship match.

“I thought our team played really well in the WPIAL playoffs,” Fisher said. “We were really motivated, fought hard and played our best tennis.”

Three seniors — Molly Welch, Katelyn Wolf and Katie Yonish — and three juniors — Laura Casaldi, Samira Gorman and Grace Perdziola — rounded out the Bethel Park squad in 2024.

“It will be an adjustment for next year because we are losing three starting players again,” Fisher said, “but I still think we will be solid and be able to keep Bethel Park tennis in people’s minds and also go far in the WPIAL bracket.”

Bethel Park was the runner-up in Section 4-3A this season. Mt. Lebanon claimed first place with an 8-0 record, followed by the Black Hawks (7-1), Upper St. Clair (6-2), Peters Township (5-3), Chartiers Valley (4-4), Canon-McMillan (3-5), South Fayette (2-6), Trinity (1-7) and West Allegheny (0-8).

Gobbie was proud of the Black Hawks’ accomplishments in 2024.

“Everyone pulled through in their matches,” she said. “I’m really proud of everyone and I think they should all be proud of themselves.

“It’s super exciting how far we made it this year in playoffs. After losing three important players from last year, we weren’t expecting to make it this far. But I think it’s a huge accomplishment what we have done.”

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