Girls tennis: San Marin springs upset win against Tam
New coach. New attitude.
Under first-year coach Christy Sherley, the San Marin High girls tennis beat Tam 4-3 on Tuesday for the Mustangs’ first victory over the Red-tailed Hawks in more than 10 years.
Senior Ava Kaplan says that before this year, a lot of people didn’t even realize San Marin had a tennis program. But now, midway through the first half of the Marin County Athletic League regular season, the Mustangs (5-3) have key wins over Tam (5-3) and Marin Catholic.
“People know us now,” said Kaplan, the Mustangs’ only senior. “We’re the San Marin tennis program and I’m just so proud to be a part of that.”
Clare Zhu sealed San Marin’s upset victory with a dominating 6-1, 6-1 victory over Lina Stuart in No. 1 singles. As darkness started to blanket the courts with both teams watching and bundled up, Zhu exuded confidence, which is building amid the Mustangs.
“We absolutely have a chance to make the playoffs,” Sherley told her players with Zhu on the court. “I can see our improvement. It makes me feel so great as the coach.”
The Red-tailed Hawks jumped ahead 2-0 thanks to wins in No. 3 doubles by Claire Cameron and Delaney Bobbitt, and No. 4 singles by Scarlett Wilson.
Kaplan helped change the Mustangs’ fortunes with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Annika Hakes in the No. 3 singles match. Kaplan was one of the trickiest players on any court, relying on lobs and short shots to control the points. She was scrappy and set the tone despite playing with a sore hamstring.
In No. 2 singles, Deepti Bhat had a solid 6-2, 6-2 win over Maria-Jose Stuart to tie the team score at 2-2. Bhat’s footwork was superior and her consistency kept the Mustangs’ upset hopes alive.
The Mustangs and Red-tailed Hawks split the No. 1 and No. 2 doubles matches to set up the showdown in No. 1 singles. San Marin’s Aashna Selvaraj and Catania De Keyrel had the most decisive win of the day, only dropping one game. Natalie Popper and Gray Blankfort came through big time for the Red-tailed Hawks, winning a third-set tiebreaker.
Tam coach Kelley Busby says it’s great to have a new team challenging perennial contenders like the Red-tailed Hawks.
“You never know who’s going to come in,” said Busby. “I knew that Clare was good last year and I had heard about Deepti. I knew this was going to be tough.”
The Red-tailed Hawks were missing a key doubles player that forced a last-minute lineup shift. Busby said she was very pleased with Wilson’s win in singles and dogfight won by Popper and Blankfort.