Girls’ Tennis Hits Higher
The varsity girls tennis team competed at the Golden State Classic in Palo Alto, California on Sept. 8 and Sept. 9, placing second out of 32 teams competing. Typically, the team travels to San Diego every season to compete in the Point Loma Tournament. However, instead of this tournament, the team entered into the Golden State Classic for the first time in five years to challenge their team’s caliber early in the season. In this tournament, 32 teams from different high schools in Southern and Northern California were split into four groups, with the winner of each group progressing into the semi-finals, followed by the finals. The playing format has four singles players and three doubles teams from each school playing against each other in a full match format, and the first to win two sets wins. If the sets are split between the teams, a 10-point tiebreaker will be played to decide the winner. The team opened the two-day tournament by securing 7-0 wins over Menlo-Atherton High School, Castilleja High School and Sacred Heart Prep High School, placing first to progress into the semifinals. On Sept. 9, the team defeated Menlo High School, 6-1, during the semifinals. However, in the finals, the team fell short to a familiar rival from Southern California, Westlake High School. The 2-5 loss placed Peninsula at second. Senior and captain Kayden Roxas expresses the importance of the results at the tournament and how beneficial it was for the team.
“A run to the finals of the Golden State Classic was super essential for the team’s confidence,” Roxas said. “With the tournament happening so early in the season, we got to experiment with different lineups and doubles pairs. The team got so many opportunities to bond since it was an overnight trip, which improved our performance on the court and our competitive spirit.”
Throughout the tournament, the girls were given the chance to play doubles with different team members and play at different singles positions. This helped them understand where they would best fit in the lineup for the upcoming Bay League matches, an annual high school athletic competition within the South Bay. Building on the team’s strong results in the Golden State Classic, the girls’ varsity tennis team continued their winning streak, opening the Bay League play 4-0, with wins over Redondo Union High School, Mira Costa High School, Santa Monica High School and Culver City High School (CCHS). The team credits the results in the Golden State Classic to their doubles teams’ improvement in game play, constantly winning five matches or more against every school. Junior Emma Gonzalez recalls how memorable this tournament was, being only the second travel tournament she has played with the team.
“My favorite moment from this tournament was winning the third doubles match with my partner as we previously lost to the same team two weeks ago,” Gonzalez said. “Playing this tournament was special because we have not competed against teams in the Northern California division before, so we did not know how well we could perform. The tournament made us realize how much versatility and depth we have within the team lineup.”
On Oct. 11, the girls varsity tennis team defeated San Marino High School, the 2022 California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Open Division Champions, 14-4. The team currently has two more league matches against CCHS and Palos Verdes High School remaining before the CIF rounds begin, where the team hopes to win the 2023 CIF Open Division title. Sophomore and first time varsity team player Ava Sharng explains how much she is looking forward to finishing the season on a high note.
“I am excited to compete in the CIF and State Championships with the girls,” Sharng said. “Above everything, I am interested to see how much our team intensity can grow since that has been a huge positive for us this season. The team environment is very strong, so I am eager to see how far we can progress.”
