The Boys Varsity Tennis team started off their season with an overall record of 7-3 and a league record of 0-1.
This year, the team consists of 12 members, with only three returning from last year. Although the team had to come up with a new lineup, the underclassmen on the team have managed to contribute to higher playing level. Head Coach Mr. Nate Slaymaker focuses on strengthening the doubles teams, knowing that this will provide depth against more difficult opponents.
In addition, Freshman Regis Lee formed one of the strongest doubles teams with Junior Alec Mejia. As the youngest player on the team, Lee keeps up with the rest through his ten years of tennis experience and multiple seasons of USTA Jr. Team Tennis.
“Playing with the team is a lot of fun,” Lee said. “I really enjoy getting to know them and playing other people who have more experience will help me to improve.”
Sophomore Jimmy Xu joined the team after moving here at the beginning of this year, and has greatly assisted the team as a left-handed singles player. Growing up in a tennis family and playing for his city team in China prepared Xu for the challenge of playing Varsity his first year on the team.
“After joining the tennis team, I have more fun in high school,” Xu said. “The school team is better than my city team in China because the team here is much smaller and I get to play with the best players.”
Currently, the team has played two league matches, San Marino and Monrovia. Against San Marino, the Rams lost 18-0, but faced Monrovia on Thursday, March 26.
Overall, the team hopes to continue on to C.I.F after league and beat out the tight matches against La Cañada. Because of spring break and the different weeks that schools have off, league matches mix in with scrimmage matches, allowing the team to practice different techniques.
“We need certain skills and tactics to become second nature,” Coach Slaymaker said. “We have already had many moments where players ‘get it.’ If we reach those goals, we should be able to reach the CIF playoffs.”
Coach Slaymaker emphasizes aggressive net play, a skill that many of the players lack. He also took players on a field trip to Indian Wells Tennis Garden to view and learn from professional tennis players in the BNP Paribas Open on March 18.