Stonington — Freshman Gabby Dellacono put her immense talent on display in the Eastern Connecticut Conference girls' tennis singles championship on Friday.

It was quite impressive.

Dellacono, Stonington's No. 1 singles player and the tournament's top seed, needed only 40 minutes to overpower St. Bernard junior Michaela Abate, 6-0, 6-2, at Stonington High School. She continued her dominating season during which she hasn't lost a set.

"She's the best who's ever been here as a freshman," Stonington coach George Crouse said. "Sometimes, by senior year, some of my stars had these qualities, but not coming in like this. The difference is that she's also a very excellent athlete and she's been trained well by various pros in the area.

"Her family, and she, is dedicated to tennis. ... She's young and she's yet to hit some walls. But, right now, she's one of the top players I've ever seen in the region. ... She's the real deal."

Abate, the defending champion, was very realistic about her chances after winning only two games in two regular-season matches against Dellacono.

Their competitive history dates back to their younger days.

"I remember playing Gabby when I was 10 years old and she was like eight," Abate said. "She beat me then. She's been good and she genuinely loves tennis. Tennis is not a passion for me but she has a drive for it."

Out of respect for her opponent, Abate abandoned her usual chip and lob style and tried to hit with Dellacono.

The first set lasted just 17 minutes.

Dellacono punished Abate with a blistering serve and deadly accurate ground strokes. Abate was forced to play on her heels while her opponent stayed on the attack.

There were very few long rallies.

"Her serve is the hardest serve I've ever faced from a female," Abate said. "Like, oh my God. Crazy. I almost like knocked myself out with my racket five times."

To her credit, Abate forced Dellacono to work harder in the second set despite fighting an uphill battle. Abate held serve in the first game to take a 1-0 lead.

After falling behind 3-1 Abate rallied to take the fifth game, lofting a well-placed shot over Dellacono's head for a big point.

It was all Dellacono after that, as she quickly closed out her first of likely many ECC singles championships.

"It means a lot," Dellacono said. "It's a big accomplishment."

Abate had a great attitude about the lopsided match. She was thrilled that she did better than the previous two meetings.

"I didn't get one (game) the first time and I barely touched the ball," Abate said. "The second one, I got one game. I've improved by 50 percent; I got two. I don't mind. I'm happy."

The highly-skilled Dellacono has an extremely bright future. She credited her coach at Mystic Indoor Tennis Club, Scott Hill, who has taught Maria Sharapova, for developing her serve. In the past, she's trained at the prestigious Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Fla.

Her plan is to quit playing other sports — she participated in field hockey and basketball during the school season — and just focus on tennis. In her age group, she's ranked fifth in the state and top 15 in New England by the USTA.

There are no off days for the dedicated Dellacono, who began playing tennis at the age of five. Her mother, Laurel, is her biggest supporter.

"Just practicing every day has gotten me better," Dellacono said.

Her next challenge will come in the state tournament. Crouse is going to try to schedule tougher teams next season to provide some competition for his star player.

"The good thing about Gabby, she'll keep working," Crouse said.

Dellacono's goal is to play Division I college tennis, although playing professionally some day is also a goal. Odds certainly favor Dellacono winning more ECC singles titles before graduation.

"She's going to take it all four years, I think," Abate said.

It was all-Stonington doubles final. In a fiercely competitive match that lasted about three hours, top-seeded Claire Morehouse and Phoebe Townsend outlasted No. 3 Hannah Middleton-Kranchberg and Brielle Fratoni-Jaskiewicz 7-6, 4-6, 6-4.

"Awesome," said Crouse of having two doubles teams in the final. "What can you say. They both train the same way."

g.keefe@theday.com