Carpinteria High girls tennis swept the Citrus Coast League Tournament on Wednesday in Nordhoff, as Aubrey Alcaraz and Charlotte Cooney/Caroline Cooney captured the singles and doubles titles, respectively.
Alcaraz battled from behind to pull out an upset victory over two-time league singles champion Ana Mitrovic of Malibu, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.
“Aubrey was amazing today. She was down 0-3 in the first set but finished that set strongly, and it carried over to the following sets,” Carpinteria High head coach Charles Bryant said. “Coach Sara Scott was very instrumental today in helping to keep Aubrey on track and in form, giving her great tips and strategies, but Aubrey had to do the work and she definitely did.”
Alcaraz’s singles championship is the program’s first in 10 years, according to Bryant.
“She stayed the course and adjusted well to whatever Ana threw at her,” Bryant said of Alcaraz. “Aubrey played so well, either defending points and then turning the tables and going on the offensive, or by just going on the offense right off the bat.
“She showed how mentally strong she has become against a quality player and fought so hard to earn the Citrus Coast League Singles Title.”
Meanwhile, the Cooney sisters dominated their way to the doubles title with a 6-0, 6-3 win over a Malibu pairing.
The championship was the fourth straight for Charlotte Cooney with her third different partner, winning with Ariana Lounsbury and Keyla Manriquez before repeating with her sister.
“That is a huge feat and I think winning today with her sister definitely had a special meaning,” Bryant said of the four-peat. “Both played really well against a newly formed doubles team from Malibu. The newness of that team was not evident however, as they showed they belonged in the finals.”
In the third-place singles match, Carpinteria High’s Izzy Scott cruised to a 6-0, 6-0 win over Arlette Ruiz of Channel Islands.
“Izzy can be so dominant and today she was. She took control from the start and did not stop,” Bryant said.
The Warrior duo of Emily Banks and Cailyn Gillen rounded out the day with a 6-0, 7-5 victory to clinch third place in the doubles bracket.
“I was so proud of how we clawed our way back, whether it was outlasting our opponents with varying pace of our groundstrokes or with some solid net play,” Bryant said. “Overall, it was a great day for the girls.”
Carpinteria High will now look ahead to the team CIF-SS playoffs beginning next week.