Girls tennis competed in California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Southern Section finals against Palos Verdes Peninsula High School on Friday, November 15 at the Claremont Club. The girls fought hard but lost 14 sets to 4.
At the end of the first round, the Trojans were down 4-2 with a win from the doubles team of Judy Kam (So.) and Yuki Asami (Jr.) and a win from the team of Marissa Williams (Sr.) and Kyla Scott (Sr.).
After the second round, the Trojans fell farther behind 9 sets to 3 with another doubles win by Williams and Scott.
Kayti Luu (Jr.) who played in her first CIF finals single match said, “Honestly it’s really rewarding. It’s an honor because we worked really hard all season, even training on Sundays. No matter what happens we know we worked our best.”
In the third and final round, the Trojans managed a win from doubles team of Danielle Pham (Sr.) and Sara Mae Garcia (Sr.) to end the day 14-4 in favor of Peninsula.
Pham said “I am really proud of every one for making it to finals three years in a row.” She plans on continuing tennis in college and is considering Cal State Fullerton.
After the match, coach John Kessler (Social Science Dept.) said, “Every single court competed till the end. No heads down, they are the better team. We went beyond expectations. It is unreal.”
Becca Kim (Jr.) said of coach Kessler, “He drives us to be all we can be. Without him we wouldn’t be here.”
The Trojan army traveled on a separate bus to Claremont to cheer on the tennis players. Boys sports commissioner Ronnie Crocco (Sr.) said, “Shout out to the Trojan army. We really made our presence known.”
Even principal John Pehrson made it out to support the team. He said, “It’s good to see that all the girls’ hard work paid off.”
Girls tennis will continue to play in the regional tournament with their next match Tuesday, November 19 against either La Costa Canyon or La Hoya.
By Abbie George
Staff Writer