Tigers take down Unionville, advance to PIAA Championships
by: Boys Tennis Contributor
Last year, the North Allegheny Boys’ Tennis Team was eliminated from the PIAA State Playoffs by Unionville in the quarterfinals in a 3-2 heartbreaker. This year, the Tigers left no doubt as to who would be advancing to the PIAA Championship Match by blanking the Longhorns, 3-0.
Leading the way for NA was junior captain Advaita Sircar who demolished his first singles opponent, 6-1, 6-0 to put the Tigers on the board first. Almost immediately, junior standout Ashwin Sudhakar doubled the lead by trouncing his second singles foe, 6-1, 6-0. The convincing win earned Sudhakar Man of the Match honors. The three remaining matches were a bit more competitive as fans and teammates wondered who would get the clinching point.
Juniors Ronit Ginde and Shivum Telang decided enough was enough and finished off their second doubles adversaries, 6-2, 6-4. Telang, fresh off a red-eye flight from Phoenix, Arizona proved that even sleep deprivation and cross-country travel couldn’t keep him from helping the Tigers advance to the Championship. Senior captain Evan Kaufman was surely on his way to victory before his third singles match was called at 6-4, 5-2. Similarly, fellow senior captain Adhav Ramadas and senior Matthew Kampi’s first doubles match was stopped in progress, 6-7 (5), 1-2.
Next up, the Tigers will play in the PIAA Championship against three-time defending state champion Conestoga. Match time is set for 4:00 PM at the Hershey Racquet Club.
Match Summary
05/16/26
North Allegheny 3 Unionville 0
Singles
#1 Advaita Sircar (NA) def. Ryan Hart (U) 6-1, 6-0
#2 Ashwin Sudhakar (NA) def. Andrew Li (U) 6-1, 6-0
#3 Evan Kaufman (NA) vs. Max Ye (U) 6-4, 5-2 DNF
Doubles
#1 Adhav Ramadas/Matthew Kampi (NA) vs. Tucker Carroll/Luke Tierney (U) 6-7 (5), 1-2 DNF
#2 Ronit Ginde/Shivum Telang (NA) def. Jacob Duran/Elijah Yoon (U) 6-2, 6-4
