Girls Tennis:
Thanks to La Salle coach Javier Djeu for this Roundup:
The La Salle girls’ tennis team opened its 2025 fall campaign with a dramatic 10–8 preseason victory over Whittier Christian, setting the tone for what head coach Javier Djeu describes as a “fresh” new era for the program.
Now in his fifth season leading the girls, Coach Djeu emphasized that while the roster has seen significant turnover after four straight league titles and a third-place finish last year, this isn’t a rebuilding year. “It feels fresh. Not like we are starting over,” he said. “It just seems like a new era is here.”
That sense of renewal was tested right away.
The Lancers have nine players on the roster — the exact number needed to fill out a lineup — but had to compete short two players in their opener.
One was injured minutes before first serve, while another is still awaiting eligibility clearance, meaning La Salle began the match already trailing 0–3.
Despite the adversity, the Lancers fought hard and delivered in the clutch.
With the match tied 8–8 after 16 sets, La Salle needed victories from both doubles No. 2 and singles No. 2. Doubles closed out their set 6–4, and then all eyes turned to junior Nora Zhang, who faced a daunting deficit.
Down 2–5 in her decisive set, Zhang rallied to win 9–7 in a tiebreak, sealing the team victory.
“That was the best part of the match,” Coach Djeu recalled. “I went out, had a quick chat with her, and she completely turned it around.
That resilience is what we’re going to build on this season.”
Looking ahead, the coach sees both opportunities and challenges.
With a smaller roster, finding the right doubles pairings will be key.
“There’s so much that goes into it, but it really comes down to what I see — and I can’t fully describe it,” he said.
Fitness and the mental side of the game are also top priorities.
To address the latter, the team is currently reading a book focused on mental toughness.
For Coach Djeu, success this year isn’t just measured in wins.
“My main goal is to improve on last year’s season — place better in the league and make it to the quarterfinals in CIF,” he said. “But on an individual level, I’m looking at the long-term plan: making my girls better people than when I first met them.”
With a dramatic first win already under their belt, the new-look Lancers have shown they’re ready to embrace the challenge of a fresh season.
Photos by Cyara Vasquez College Baseball: When the Citrus baseball players arrived at their Glendora campus on Sunday morning for the first time all year, they knew an historic season would come to an end without a pair of victories over Cypress. The Owls and Chargers had eliminated PCC on Friday with one win apiece […]
College Baseball: Mt. SAC saw its 2026 season come to an end on Sunday afternoon in the San Diego area. After dropping a 12-5 decision at Palomar on Saturday, the Mounties needed to beat the Comets twice on Sunday to keep their season alive. However, with no shame to MSAC, Palomar was the best program […]
Photos by Robert Ketterling College Baseball: Cypress scored four total runs in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings to edge Citrus, 8-7, and snap the Owls 12-game winning streak. The Chargers need one win on Sunday to move on to next week’s Super Regionals. Three errors cost the boys from Glendora three runs on Saturday […]
Baseball: La Canada had one final nonleague contest before facing Monrovia in the final week of the regular season. And the Spartans pounded out an 11-8 victory over their visitors from Pasadena on Saturday. LCHS out-hit PHS, 14-7, including a 4-1 advantage in extra-base hits. Cyrus Garroway was charged with three runs on four hits […]
Baseball: Monrovia enters the final week of the regular season having won four of their last five games. And that includes Saturday’s 6-2 victory over Flintridge Prep. Gavin Shearing went two innings and he was charged with two runs on two hits. Shearin walked three and fanned four FP batters. Padraic Bursseau earned the win, […]
College Baseball: Palomar jumped on their visitors from Mt. SAC early and they cruised to a 12-5 victory. The Comets out-hit the Mounties, 16-8, including a 5-2 advantage in extra-base hits. After MSAC and PC knocked off Mt. San Jacinto yesterday, it became a best-of-three series that will conclude on Sunday. Hudson Castillo got roughed […]
Baseball: West Covina secured the two-game Valle Vista League sweep over Rowland by scores of 6-4 and 4-2 on Wednesday and Friday, respectively. Rieleigh Rangel went five innings, and he was charged with two runs on three hits and one hit batter. Rangel didn’t issue a walk and registered eight strikeouts. Fifty-three of his 76 […]
Baseball: Northview secured a two-game Valle Vista League sweep over Wilson by scores of 12-2 and 10-0 on Wednesday and Friday, respectively. The Vikings out-hit the Wildcats by a combined 24-5 over that two-game stretch. With two games to play against last-place Rowland, NHS is likely to finish VVL play at 7-3. They currently sit […]
Baseball: Monrovia dropped three consecutive games to San Marino in 2026. The first was a tournament game, and the last two were Rio Hondo League contests. On Friday, the Wildcats watched a 6-1 lead disappear. However, MHS would score once in the bottom of the eighth to secure a 7-6 victory over the Titans. With […]
