Chatham Glenwood junior Ellie Surges admitted that her senior teammate Samantha Shankland has been a great example during her high school tennis journey.
“Sam is a team leader and my biggest role model on the team,” Surges said. “I remember when I started, I saw her, and I was like, ‘I want to be like her.’
“She’s so nice, so sweet, so athletic and so fast; I’ve looked up to her.”
Now Surges has a chance to replicate Shankland’s accomplishments as the No. 2 singles seed at the girls Central State Eight Conference Tournament this weekend at the Velasco Tennis Center in Washington Park. Shankland was awarded the top seed after she defeated Maroa-Forsyth’s Ella Sandgren in a third-set tiebreak in a quad meet on Aug. 24.
The CS8 tournament begins at 1 p.m. on Friday and concludes Saturday with a start at 9 a.m.
Surges has gained some serious momentum this season, coming into the tournament undefeated in the CS8 while playing in the No. 1 singles spot for Glenwood. She rallied for a 6-1, 5-7, 10-8 victory over Normal U-High’s Haley Martin on Oct. 3 in a dual meet before following that up with a 6-2, 6-0 triumph over Sacred Heart-Griffin senior Caroline Sheehan on Monday. Earlier this season, Surges took down The State Journal-Register’s defending All-Area Player of the Year, Julia Musgrave of Rochester, 6-2, 6-0 in a dual meet on Sept. 11.
Surges credits her father and mother for introducing her to the game. As a sophomore, Surges made a push late in the year and finished fourth at the Class 2A Belleville West Sectional and advanced to the Illinois High School Association’s state finals, where she went 0-2.
“All the girls that I’ve played have been amazing players; they’ve been great people,” Surges said. “I think that coach Sonthana (Thongsithavong) and my dad (former Glenwood coach Eric Surges) have really boosted my confidence this year.”
“They’ve helped me improve strategically and fundamentally, and I’m definitely more confident going into the postseason this year than I was last year. It’s a little bit of added pressure, but I’m excited to see those nice (players) again and prove myself again in the tournament.”
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Thongsithavong has noticed the difference and maturity in Surges’ play this season after Shankland held Glenwood’s No. 1 singles position since her sophomore year.
“Ellie took a big leap and took that No. 1 singles and just ran with it,” Thongsithavong said. “Ellie’s methodical, she has a lot of variation to her shots; a very smart player. It frustrates the other player, but she has some weapons too that she didn’t have. She hits passing shots now and her serve has got a little more pace to it.”
Glenwood narrowly defeated U-High, 26-25, to win the CS8 tournament last season. Shankland and Surges played a big role in Glenwood’s title run when Shankland outlasted Surges 4-6, 6-0, 6-1 in the singles championship match.
“If it was anybody but Sam, I would’ve been upset, but I love Sam,” said Surges of her loss in the title match. “If I can’t be the winner, I would want it to be Sam. I was happy for her and the team.”
Being top-heavy in singles is a bit of a switch for Glenwood, Thongsithavong said.
“Normally our program is heavy on doubles so this is the first year that my top two players are going in singles,” he noted. “That’s something new for me and something exciting to go into conference.”
Shankland, who started playing tennis at 7 years old, became a protégé of Thongsithavong in her early tennis years. She still has something to prove as the top CS8 seed while supporting the team to another conference championship.
“We’ve been strong for the past few years,” Shankland said. “Sonthana has done a good job keeping that up for everybody. I feel confident going into the conference. I think we’ll do just as good or even better than last year with the way we’ve been playing lately.”
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As for the differences between her and Surges’ game, Shankland appreciates both.
“Ellie gets to a bunch of balls, she’s crazy fast on the court,” Shankland said. “She gets to everything, and she never gives up on the ball. I think that aspect of our game is similar — I also try to go after every ball and never give up. I think I attack the ball a little bit more, try to play a little more aggressively, but both strategies are good.”
Thongsithavong vehemently said he knows where the two are very similar.
“Off the court, I don’t know anybody who is more liked than these two,” he said. “They care for each other, it’s not really competitive at all. You can ask anybody on the team. They look up to these two off the court on how they portray themselves and how they carry themselves. They’re good role models for the players, and I can say that about both of them, probably two of the nicest players I’ve ever coached.”
Contact Trevor Lawrence: 788-1548, trevor.lawrence@sj-r.com.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: IHSA girls tennis: Chatham Glenwood Surges into CS8 title contention
