Varsity Girls Tennis fell 4-3 to Los Gatos on Tuesday, Sept. 16. Although the Matadors started with a 3-0 deficit, they managed to pull back with three straight wins from junior Eva Tian, in singles, senior Lelani Laruelle along with junior Lisa Yoshida in doubles, finally sophomore Sakthi Satrawada and freshman Lena Shih in doubles. However, they ultimately fell in the last match of the day. Despite the loss, Head Coach Gene Fortino believes that the team played well and is proud of their performance.
“They brought a lot of enthusiasm,” said Fortino. “And they’re also talented, this is probably our best freshman class in a long time. So, it really bodes well for the future.”
Senior and captain Jillian Yang also feels that this year’s team is very strong. Yang thinks that this close loss can be attributed in part to intense heat that the players felt during the matches.
“It’s nerve-wracking,” Yang said. “And it’s intense. You can tell the players are fatigued and overwhelmed. They get really tight and stiff.”
Freshman and doubles player Xinyi Zhang also said that nerves played a part in their loss as she felt nervous during the last match. However, Zhang still feels they could have done better in the last set by being more enthusiastic and at least secured a score of 10-8 instead of 10-5.
“I feel like, for the tiebreaker, we should have cheered up more,” said Zhang.
Zhang aims to work more on communication with her partner and her backhand techniques. She also wants to improve on her serving abilities, due to the fact that they had multiple double faults during the game — when a player is unable to serve correctly for both of their two serves.
Overall, Fortino believes that the team will continue to improve as the season goes on, and this match is just a stepping-stone to their success.
“I feel very positive about the future,” Fortino said. “I couldn’t ask for anything more from the girls, I couldn’t be prouder.”
