Photo of Dora Wang courtesy of Amanda Lin

Girls Tennis:

Thanks to Maranatha for this report

A combination of factors weighed in to the Lady Minutemen getting off to a sluggish start, resulting in a deficit they could not overcome.

Learning that their top player, Grace Yang, would not be playing, fatigue from a near Four-hour match at San Gabriel less than 24 hours earlier, and facing the strongest team they’ve played this year.

With the exception of #2 Diana Sarksyan/Jennifer Chu (who battled for an hour before succumbing, 6-4) and freshman alternate, Dora Wang (who played energetically in a 6-2 loss), the rest of the team was not able to match the Rowland’s energy and focus, resulting in the Raiders sweeping the first round, 6-0.

The Lady Minutemen regrouped and responded with a much more spirited effort in the 2nd round, led by captains, Mia Su, Kathryn Khalil, and Mia Huang, along with Huang’s partner, Madison White, each of whom had something to prove after their lackluster 1st round.

They all played rousing, determined, relentless tennis the rest of the way, with Su and Khalil sweeping the rest of their sets 7-5, 6-1 and 6-4, 7-6(2) respectively.

Huang/White battled back from a 5-2 deficit to force a tie-break, before losing 7-6(4) in a high-quality affair. They rode that momentum to win their final set, 6-1.

The 1st round of play, not withstanding, Maranatha has reason to be encouraged, as they got a glimpse of what they are capable of when they play with energy and focus, essentially playing the higher-ranked Raiders to a near-draw in the final 2 rounds.

The Lady Minutemen will try to bottle and build on that momentum next week, when they visit Alhambra on Monday, Blair on Tuesday, and Duarte on Thursday, in a week that will test their physical and mental resolve.