San Marcos went 8-1 in singles sets en route to a 14-4 non-league boys tennis win at cold and rainy Valencia on Thursday.
It was the third straight win for the Royals and the first loss in four matches for Valencia,
“The match was played in 45-degree weather after a lengthy rain delay,” coach Jarrod Bradley said. “This is probably the coldest match I’ve coached in 19 years, but we responded and came out red hot.”
The Royals took a 5-1 lead after the first-round of sets. “Masato Perea reeled off three straight games after being down 4-3 to win against Gabriel Chavez, and Daniel Newton and Alexi Gil hit some sizzling returns to seal a 6-4 doubles win in their first set,” said Bradley.
Dominik Stefanov swept his sets 6-1, 6-0, 6-0 to pace the Royals.
Alexi Gill swept his sets with two different partners. “Alexi is our most versatile player. He could easily start in our singles lineup against nearly anyone, but his kick serve, penetrating groundstrokes, and solid volleys make him the ideal doubles partner. Everyone on the team wants to play with him.”
The Royals will play at Santa Barbara on Tuesday in their first Channel League match.
San Marcos 14
Singles
Masato Perera 3-0
Dominik Stefanov 3-0
Alex Chow 2-1
Doubles
Alexi Gill-Daniel Newton 2-0
Alexi Gill-Alex Wilson 1-0
Bryan Shott-Alex Stefanov 2-1
Ronin Suzuki-Jimmy Wimbish 1-1
Sam Friedman-Jimmy Wimbish 0-1
Valencia 4
Singles
Gabriel Chavez 1-2
Aditya Patki 0-3
Aiden Reyes 0-3
Doubles
Ian Cho-Eddie Cedeno 1-2
Stephen Thay-Brent Lim 2-1
Matt Young-Jason Tumbokon 0-3