Today, November 15, in the quarterfinals of the Central Coast Section (CCS) competition, the girls tennis team lost a tight matchup against St. Ignatius by a very slim margin: 3-4. This marks the end of their successful season for the team, as it finished among the top eight teams in the CCS tournament that attracts schools all over the Bay Area.
Coming in off its 4-3 win against Leland High School on Wednesday in the round of 16, the girls tennis team was optimistic about their chances of moving farther into the CCS bracket. Los Altos had received a first round bye and played Leland in the second round of team CCS, with three of the team’s four singles players — senior Kacey Incerpi, junior Whitney Mathews and sophomore Juliette Martin — claiming victory, and the doubles team of senior Avery Ikeda and sophomore Carina Burdick winning as well.
“Overall, the girls played very solidly in their matches against Leland,” coach Hung Nguyen said. “We went into this match with a little more confidence and belief in our ability to possibly take away a win today.”
However, as a result of advancing in the competition, the girls team was faced with a much stronger opponent: St. Ignatius. The girls’ singles were matched against a few of the strongest players in the league, and as a result, struggled to find ways to take the lead in their matches. Junior Whitney Matthews, playing as number three, was the sole single’s win for the school.
Other wins came from number one doubles, senior Avery Ikeda and sophomore Carina Burdick and also from number two doubles, senior Haley Jones and senior Elizabeth Fuchs.
Although it suffered a tough loss in the quarterfinals, the girls tennis team had an overall successful season to look back on. With several seniors leaving next year, however, the girls will be looking toward improving their games and working alongside new team members.
“With some of my top players graduating next year, we’ll have to work even harder next season because of the new younger players,” Nguyen said. “But I am confident that we will have just as good or better season.”
