Cate girls tennis opened its CIF-SS Div. 3 playoff run with a 13-5 victory over local foe Dos Pueblos on Wednesday in Carpinteria.
With the victory, the Rams will remain at home to host Whitney High in a second-round matchup on Friday at 2 p.m.
“We’ve been deep in the CIF playoffs for a couple of years now, and I think that definitely shows in the way we compete in high-stakes matches,” Cate head coach Trevor Thorpe said.
“The level of confidence and readiness to compete at a high level today from our doubles teams is evidence of our belief that, despite being the smallest school in the top three divisions, we are capable of competing at the highest level.”
Cate dominated doubles action with a complete 9-0 sweep, as the duos of Lisa Hasebe/Chelsea Newlove, Reyna Takahashi/Elly Edwards and Elsie Chamberlain/Claire Bianchi all went a perfect 3-0.
The final four points for the Rams came courtesy of two singles wins apiece by Ivy Huang and Jade Wang.
As for the Chargers, Mel Mayo capped off her stellar team season with a perfect 3-0 sweep in singles play.
Mark Keppell 9, San Marcos 9 (MK wins in games 79-74) (Div. 4)
The Royals dropped a heartbreaker to Mark Keppell in the first round of the CIF-SS Div. 4 playoffs.
After the two teams were tied at 9-9 at the end of play, Mark Keppell earned the win for having a five-point advantage in games won.
Tate Jaeger pulled in a pair of points for the Royals with two singles victories, while Leah Shenoda came up with a singles win of her own.
In doubles, both Jacqui Wilson/Elana Rowan and Riley Beainy/Paia Lowry went 2-1 for San Marcos.
Rancho Cucamonga 10, Carpinteria High 8 (Div. 4)
The Warriors’ season came to an end with a first-round playoff loss to Rancho Cucamonga on Wednesday.
“I was very proud of how we competed and tried to climb out of the hole we dug in that first round,” Carpinteria High head coach Charles Bryant said. “We always fought and showed a lot of character facing off against a school that has been D2 the past few years and has 3500 students (compared to our 580). We showed we belong.”
The sister duo of Charlotte and Caroline Cooney led the way for the Warriors with a 3-0 day in doubles play. Meanwhile, Emily Banks/Cailyn Gillen went 2-1 to round out the doubles points.
In singles, Izzy Scott, Abby Gobbell and Aubrey Alcaraz all tallied one win for Carpinteria.
“As always, it is very hard to see the seniors play their final matches. Time goes by so quickly,” Bryant said. “Seniors Charlotte Cooney, Kacy Kramer, Abby Gobbell and Karissa Cavier all have improved so much over just this season or over the four seasons they have been here.
“They were great leaders, great sportsmen and just fun to have on the courts. They will all be missed.”
Santa Barbara High 13, Laguna Blanca 5 (Div. 5)
The Dons kicked off their Div. 5 playoff run with a win over local foe Laguna Blanca on Wednesday.
“This was the first and only meeting between the Dons and the Owls and it did not disappoint,” Santa Barbara High head coach Shane Carmody said. “With both teams finishing third in their leagues, the level was pretty evenly matched.”
The Dons will now be on the road against Beverly Hills for a second-round matchup on Friday.
Santa Barbara High was led by a potent doubles attack that earned eight of the nine possible points in the matchup, despite heading into the matchup shorthanded.
“Being more vulnerable, missing a varsity doubles starter got them to lock in,” Carmody said. “It seemed to enhance the quality of play and increase the focus of all three doubles teams.”
The duos of Violet Marr/Kana Wolfe and Lucy Kronberg/Stella Malina spearheaded the doubles effort by each going 3-0, while Sky O’Reilly/Makena Taylor tacked on two more wins.
“We definitely mixed it up really well today,” Marr said. “I’m super proud of us.”
Meanwhile, Nicole Buist continued her undefeated season in singles play with a 3-0 sweep of the Owls. Iris Heckes and Elisa Hine each earned big singles victories as well to contribute to the team’s 13 points.
No information was provided by Laguna Blanca tennis.
Bishop Diego 14, YULA 4 (Div. 8)
The Cardinals rolled to a strong first-round victory in the Div. 8 playoffs against YULA High on Wednesday in Los Angeles.
“We played loose, confident and with a great demeanor on the court from start to finish today,” Bishop Diego head coach Peter Kirkwood said.
The Cardinals will hit the road to take on top-seeded Alhambra on Friday.
Bishop Diego cruised in doubles action with eight total points, spearheaded by sweeps from Avery Carter/Rafael Fay and Victoria Heredia/Sonia Marquez-Miranda. Annebelle Liu/Sophie Ramanzi picked up a pair of wins as well.
“We’re returning the serve much more aggressively now in the doubles,” Kirkwood said. “The movement has always been good at the net but we had a tendency to over hit the volley. Now we are eliminating the tendency to over hit them once we draw the ball to us.”
In doubles, the Cardinals’ points came courtesy of a pair of 3-0 sweeps from Natalie Chan and Haley Hubbs. Neither Chan nor Hubbs dropped a single game.
“I may sound like a broken record but [Chan and Hubbs] were dominant again today,” Kirkwood said. “A coach could get spoiled having such a great one two punch such as Natalie and Haley.
“Both controlled the baseline and had both consistency and firepower advantages over their opponents.”