Cate School rallied from a 4-2 deficit to hand Dos Pueblos its first loss, 10-8, in a non-league girls tennis match at DP.
Cate (2-0) struck first with quick wins from Grace Fuss at No. 1 singles and Carol Cai/Fritze Mayer at No. 1 doubles but that was it for the Rams in Round 1. Dos Pueblos (4-1) got key wins at No. 2 and 3 doubles and Alessa Sommer came from 3-2 down to win the next four games against sophomore Aminah Hill.
Cate righted the ship in the second round, winning the next three sets and pulling even at 6-6, thanks to strong play from senior Mia Foster and sophomore Ashi Kamra at the No. 2 position. Fuss won her three sets 6-0, 6-1, 6-0 and the No. 1 doubles of Cai/Mayer also swept three sets (6-3, 6-0, 6-3) to remain undefeated on the year.
The No. 3 doubles team of Kamra and Foster beat the Chargers’ top two duos in identical 6-2 victories.
Aminah Hill rallied from her first-round loss to collect two key wins, including the 10th and match-clinching win in the final round.
“I think it’s been 10 years since we last played DP and I remember the last one not going so well for us, so this was a good win,” said Cate coach Trevor Thorpe. “They’ve got a very balanced team and with this being our first week of match play, they really had us on the back foot in that first round.
“We’re fortunate to have unmovable rocks at No. 1 singles and doubles but it takes more than six sets to win a match. So far this season, both against Santa Barbara and Dos Pueblos, we’ve had some less experienced players step up and get us big wins in the clutch. Ashi Kamra and Mia Foster were a combined 0-5 on Tuesday against Santa Barbara, but today, their two wins were the key to us taking this match.”
DP’s No. 2 singles player Alessa Somer won her last two sets 6-3, 6-0 and the No. 3 doubles of Cami Chou/Remy Greenwald also took their last two points (6-2, 6-3).
“We got pushed in both singles and doubles,” said Chargers coach Laura Housinger. “We were expecting a close match and it really proved to be a test for all of our players. I am mostly impressed with how well the team took to losses by saying things like ‘now I know what to work on’ or ‘I definitely need some more help with this.’ We had a lot of success prior to this match, so a loss is always difficult, but I know our team can step up to the challenges of working hard and bettering their mental and physical games throughout the rest of this season.”
Cate will open Tri-Valley League play on Tuesday at home vs. La Reina at 3:45 p.m. The Chargers open Channel League action on Tuesday at Cabrillo at 3 p.m.