As girls’ tennis continues practicing and competing at matches, most boys’ tennis players can afford to relax because even though girls’ tennis starts in the fall, boys’ tennis starts in the spring.

The exact origins of this long-held tradition are unclear, but it seems to be common sense.

Sophomore varsity tennis player Vivian Lin believes that the scheduling occurs to reduce conflict between girls’ and boys’ tennis.

“If boys' tennis season was at the same time as girls' tennis season, then there would obviously be a lot of conflicts with who occupies the courts at what times,” Lin said. “Professional tennis is basically year round, so I guess our tennis season is also professional tennis season.”

Likewise, senior Tristan Xiao, who participates in boys’ tennis, believes that they would not have enough resources, including courts and coaches. He also said that if they had a year-round season like professional tennis, it would be “too tiring physically and mentally.”

Athletics director Tim Lugo explains that the season of sports are organized by a school’s athletic section within the state and not by individual schools.

Girls’ and boys’ tennis, for example, are in different seasons due to court space, and the same happens for water polo and swimming because there is not enough pool space.

The number of facilities and weather are the main reasons the school offers winter sports. In Southern California, for example, water polo is a winter sport because the weather is warmer, while in Northern California, it is played in the spring. Qualified coaches are also more difficult to find, so when water polo is played in the winter, one coach can instruct both boys and girls, he said.

“Availability of facilities has a lot to do when sports are offered,” Lugo said. “It’s been brought up in our section [for a winter water polo season], but our weather is different than the south that time of year.”

Girls’ and boys’ soccer, on the other hand, is played in the winter due to lack of field space, which are taken up by football and field hockey in the fall and lacrosse and track in the spring, he said.

Although Lin plays tennis during other seasons, she said that she enjoys playing the sport in the fall more.

“My time is usually more open to practice and compete, since first semester is usually easier than second semester,” Lin said. “Plus, the weather is cooler, so I don't have to drink water every five minutes to keep myself hydrated.”