The Ross School's Lillien Weiss clinches Long Island girls tennis small school championship
Lillien Weiss of the Ross School returns a serve in a singles match during the Long Island girls tennis small school championship on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026 in Shoreham. Credit: Michael A. Rupolo Sr.
The Ross School girls tennis team has been waiting for the opportunity to take its talent outside of Suffolk County.
Now it isn’t slowing down.
The Ravens took down Cold Spring Harbor, 3-0, in the Long Island small school championship on Thursday at Shoreham-Wading River. Lillien Weiss clinched the match with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Taylor Winthrop at first singles.
“This is such a big achievement for all of us,” Weiss said. “We’ve been working so hard this season and we have a very strong team. All the girls are very close and it feels good to get this done.”
Ross will face the winner of the Section IX/Section I subregional in the regional final.
Weiss was a star in the doubles draw last season, winning the Suffolk individual title and advancing to the semifinals of the state tournament with partner Lola Dangin. This season, she made a seamless transition to take on a key role in the singles lineup.
“I really enjoyed playing doubles last year. It was so fun for me,” Weiss said. “It’s been a great experience playing singles for the team this season and it’s something I train for. It’s nice to play a singles match because I feel it’s a little more competitive.”
Brooke Saracco defeated Sylvana Guariglia, 6-0, 6-1, at second singles and first doubles pair Dangin and Luma Teixeira beat Isabella Chomyonk and Elizabeth Mullen, 6-0, 6-2, before Weiss closed out the match with her win.
After earning the program’s first Suffolk title in a 4-3 win over Bayport-Blue Point on Oct. 15, Saracco said she hopes she and her team can continue to advance.
“This has been a goal of ours for a long time and it’s just so nice to finally achieve it,” Saracco said. “Our team just has such great energy and this has been a great year for us so far.”
Coach Richele LeSaldo said sweeping the singles slate sets an important foundation for any match and that seeing Weiss and Saracco play so efficiently comes as no surprise. Weiss has dropped only three games all season and Saracco has dropped only seven. Neither has lost a set.
LeSaldo said that kind of dominance will prove valuable at the next level.
“It was clean,” she said. “[Weiss and Saracco] handled business and it set great momentum for the rest of the matches. They’re players that play year-round, so they’re accustomed to competing and having the weight on their shoulders. They did well.”
Tess Ferguson is a reporter on Newsday's high school sports staff. She joined the team after graduating with a journalism degree from Ithaca College in 2025.
