Through steady training and stronger morale, girls’ tennis continues winning streak

Freshmen Riya Rama and Mihika Singh practice doubles during practice on Sept. 19.

The Falcons look forward to rematches against rivals they had close losses to earlier in the season.

After piling up wins in recent matches, the girls’ varsity tennis team now stands in third place in the El Camino league with a 7-2 record as of Oct. 19.

After winning a home match against Milpitas on Oct. 4, an away match against Fremont on Oct. 6 and another home match against Santa Clara on Oct. 11, the team is peaking at the right time. All three victories were by 7-0 margins.

In addition, the team won 4-3 in a rematch against Lynbrook on Oct. 13 — defeating a rival they had previously lost to on Sept. 22.

“These wins are simply because we’ve gotten better,” said junior Sabrina Manea, the team’s No. 1 singles player. “They also helped instill confidence in a lot of people.”

Manea attributes the team’s rematch win to an overall improvement in team skill. She considers their previous loss against Lynbrook on Sept. 22 to be a tight one — although the final score was 5-2, she and No. 4 singles player freshman Mihika Singh both lost in third set tiebreaks.

“The losses [on Sept. 22] were winnable matches,” she said. “They were because some of the stronger team players lost their matches in close games. I think these losses caused low energy and morale.”

The team’s main goal for the season is to continue their momentum and move back up to the De Anza league next year — from which they dropped this year — by winning their last few matches. Since the Falcons lost 6-1 to Los Gatos on Sept. 13, they need to defeat Los Gatos in their rematch at the end of the season on Oct. 27 in order to win the league and return to the De Anza division next year.

To accomplish this goal, they train every Monday and Wednesday with coach Florin Marica after school to solidify basic movements by practicing serves and hitting drills. Manea noted that having strong freshmen additions to the team, such as No. 3 singles player Viki Toram and No. 4 singles player Mihika Singh, have helped the team.

Senior captain Arshi Chawla said this year’s season ultimately went “a lot better than last year” and hopes for a victory against Los Gatos on the team’s senior night. (Because of print deadlines, The Falcon cannot cover this match in the Oct. 28 print edition.)

“There’s a lot of pressure,” Chawla said. “We have a chance to win the league and move back up to the upper division, so my fingers are crossed.”