Warriors’ Manilla hungry for revenge

Western Albemarle junior Joey Manilla doesn’t remember the score of his match against Salem’s Patrick O’Keefe in the final of last year’s Group AA boys tennis team tournament. All he can recall was that he lost — and that the match wasn’t very close.

This morning at Radford University, Manilla will get another crack at O’Keefe when they meet in the individual state semis.

“I think I’m a lot better than I was last year,” said Manilla, who lost 6-0, 6-2. “He can hit the ball very hard and is a very good player, and he places it real well. Last year I think I was a little too defensive. This year I think I’m more offensive.

“I’m hoping the end result will be different.”

Western coach Charles Ix is optimistic about Manilla’s chances, despite the fact that his star has missed a good portion of play this spring with an ankle injury.

“He’s playing better than I’ve ever seen him play in some of his recent matches,” Ix said. “His play in regionals and practice has been phenomenal. He’s moving well and is hitting the ball hard.

“Patrick’s a good player, but if Joey sticks to his strategy, he has a good chance of winning.”

Manilla plans on mixing things up against O’Keefe. In the match last season, Manilla believes he let O’Keefe get too comfortable on the baseline.

“It’s easy to get in a groove hitting with him,” Manilla explained, “but then you get overwhelmed by the shots that he hits, so this year I’m going to try and keep him out of groove and when I get a short ball, just close out the point.”

Manilla, who is just wrapping up his exams, will have to stay focused no matter how his rematch with O’Keefe turns out. On Friday, he leads Western into the semifinals of the team state tournament. Those matches will be played on the campus of Virginia Tech. In addition, Manilla is playing in the state doubles semis with partner Alex Preve.

In the team tournament, the Patriots will be looking for their third straight title. They will be taking on Jamestown, a squad that they beat, 5-4, in the 2007 state final.

“They’re out for revenge,” Ix said. “[Their hometown newspaper] has put out some articles about them trying to exercise ghosts from two years ago when we beat them. They’ll have a very strong team.”

Manilla feels his previous absence from the Albemarle lineup may prove beneficial in the team competition.

“It was kind of a nice mental break,” he said, “and I think it was good for the team because everyone had to slide up a notch and was forced to play tougher matches. It was good experience.”

First things first, though.

Manilla, who has battled the dreaded plantar fasciitis since his return to action, realizes that he’s probably the underdog against O’Keefe – and that’s fine by him.

“I was out for two months and he’s the defending champion,” Manilla said. “There’s no pressure. I’m feeling good and excited about [today].”

Napolitano represents Patriots in Group AAA tournament

Albemarle’s team season may have ended, but sophomore standout Megan Napolitano is still alive for the Group AAA singles title and will look to take the next step this morning.

Napolitano squares off against Northern Region champion Faby Chaillo of George C. Marshall at in the state quarterfinals 9 a.m. at Jefferson District Park in Fairfax. Napolitano is 21-1 on the season, with her only loss coming to Loudoun Valley’s Kiersten Pappas in the Northwest Region final.