Vikes, Cat moving on in postseason

Prep girls tennis: WR singles player, Valencia doubles pair advance in CIF play

West Ranch’s Jordyn McBride entered the CIF-Southern Section individual sectionals at Cate High of Carpinteria on Monday with last year on her mind.

The sophomore girls tennis player had been at this stage before. Last season, she made it through the first two rounds of play before losing in the third.

This year, after a bye in the first round, McBride won her second match 6-2, 6-3 and the third 6-0, 6-0. That makes her the first individual girls tennis player in West Ranch history to advance to the Round of 32.

“I’m just really excited that I get to go on to the next round because I was scared that I wasn’t going to be able to,” McBride said. “But today I felt like I proved myself and that’s what I wanted this year.”

The Valencia doubles team of Amanda Tabanera and Carlotta Nonnis-Marzano, who played at

Carpinteria High on Monday, will also be moving on to the Round of 32 after winning 6-0, 6-0 in the second round and 6-2, 6-2 in the third after a bye in the first round.

Tabanera, a junior, had reached the Round of 32 her freshman year playing doubles with Jennifer Shin. It will be a whole new experience for Nonnis-Marzano, who is a foreign exchange student from Italy.

“Our games are similar but they’re also, we have our own strengths,” Tabanera said of how she plays with Nonnis-Marzano. “Today I think we worked well. We did everything well together. She’s really strong, so it makes me able to put my volleys away.”

Shin was also representing the Vikings at sectionals in singles, but fell in the third round. Nicole Alvarez and Olivia Bloome played as doubles for the Wildcats, but also saw their postseasons end at the tournament.

Both McBride and Tabanera credited Foothill League play and the competition between Valencia and West Ranch as good preparation for Monday’s tournament.

But at the end of the day, it’s all about showing off the tennis prowess the Santa Clarita Valley has to offer.

The Round of 32 will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 28 at Whittier Narrows Tennis Center in South El Monte.