Game, Set, Match: Girls Tennis is “Serving” Once Again!

Written by Ariel Connell, Staff writer

Girls tennis is doing great in their new season!

Well into the season, girls tennis is starting to show what they are truly capable of. The current record is 3-3, three losses, three wins. The team is not only amazing, but the girls are also extremely tight knit. “My favorite part about tennis is definitely the people and coach Mateljin, they truly are some of the best people on campus,” says Olivia Steele (11).

The team so far has played Ramona, Temecula Valley, Murrieta Valley, Norco, Patriot, and Rancho Cucamonga. When asked what the goals were for this year, coach Mateljin states, “our main goal is to go to the league playoffs, and I really just want the girls to improve on their consistency and skills and overall just get some experience for our players.” There are not many girls with varsity experience besides the captains, Sophie Moran and Rylee Turner, and some juniors, Elizabeth Murray, Penelope McIntosh, and Kelsey Troast.

Coach Mateljin then continues to tell about how since there are no league games yet, he still changes up the starting roster, just to give these girls with little experience, more experience. 

As previously stated, the team is a very close knit group, with most teammates being good friends outside of the sport. When asked their favorite memory, Caterina Vidussi (12) talks about how “riding the bus on the away games is my favorite part every single year. I get to make so many memories and also get to just hang out with my friends before we lock in and win!”

These girls practice for hours every day after school, starting during sixth period. They practice for almost two hours a day, four days a week. Some actually practice even more hours outside of school. Olivia Steele (11) states, “sometimes on the weekends, I go over to my friends house and we practice together in her backyard; it’s really fun, especially because she can help me wherever I need it.”

Simran Kaur, a junior on the JV team, says, “just recently me, Ally, and Olivia Steele, were rallying on the court and I had missed a backhand and almost fell. We laughed for the rest of practice, probably my favorite memory ever.” 

The next few months, these girls have a booked schedule, with tons of games going forward. Check out their schedule here, and come on out and root for our Bears on the tennis court:

*Denotes Ivy League match