In a rare instance, the La Jolla High girls tennis team ended up on the losing side of a CIF team championship battle.
The Lady Vikings lost last week to Cathedral High, 10-8, for the Division III crown. As La Jolla High Head Coach Maggie Mulkins noted, “It was a very disappointing loss for my players, since we had won the last seven years in a row.”
Another tough point for the Lady Vikings in the loss was that during the season, La Jolla had beaten Cathedral twice.
Despite the loss, La Jolla once again turned in a stellar season. Key players for the season have included Hannah Holladay, Alexi Archambault and Izzy Taylor for singles. In doubles, La Jolla got strong efforts from Jenna Essakow, Elyse Cummings, Amanda Lin, Kristina Graf, Johanna Hsieh and Chelsea Raley.
“Most of our lineup is coming back next year, so we are hoping for another great season,” Mulkins added.
At The Bishop’s School, the Lady Knights fell in the Division III semifinals last Thursday to eventual champion Cathedral, 11-7. Bishop’s had come into the match with a mark of 17-3 on the season.
Bishop’s, the Coastal League champion during the regular season, was the third seed in the Division III team playoffs.
The Lady Knights opened play in the quarters with a 13-5 win over San Marcos. In the loss in the semis to Cathedral, Kimmi Cox swept her matches and the doubles tandem of Jackie Schulze and Pati Guinea won two matches.
“We were disappointed we didn’t play to the best of our ability, but Cathedral was ready to play and it showed in the match,” Bishop’s head coach Jose Ruelas noted. Coastal League tourney play runs this week through today.
“Overall, we had a very successful season and with everybody except three players coming back, we shall once again look to fight for another CIF title,” Ruelas added, noting his thoughts on next season.
In Division II action, University City (UC) was also eliminated in the semifinals. UC fell to Westview by a 16-2 score.
CIF Individual Singles get under way next week.