Grizzlies girls tennis open ESL with win
Granite Hills High School girls tennis defeated Lindsay 9-0 at home in their first East Sequoia League match of the season on Thursday afternoon.
It was the Grizzlies (1-1, 1-0 ESL) second match of the season and the Cardinals (0-1, 0-1 ESL) first.
Granite Hills got off to a great start beginning in singles when all six players went up 4-0 before giving up a single game to Lindsay. The Cardinals No. 2 Rose Agulera and No. 3 Gisselle Chavez were the first players to break the Grizzlies’ streaks.
Facing Granite Hills Kellyann Whited, Agulera won a game and then split the next two with Whited, before Whited won the next two for an 8-2 victory.
Against Diane Torres, Chavez was able to win the fifth game, but lost the next four and Torres won 8-1.
Playing in the No. 4 spot, Lindsay’s Nayeli Martinez put up a late fight against Granite Hills Mary Navarro. Down 7-0, Martinez won the next three games before finally falling 8-3.
No. 1 Celeste Puente, No. 5 Jelitza Alcantar and No. 6 Melina Morales all won their matches 8-0 for the Grizzlies.
“There’s much improvement in the four days of practice we’ve had since our last match,” said first-year head coach Shelly Lozano. “They know what their individual mistakes are in the match so those are things that they are concentrating on in practice so I do see the improvement. And in a short time. So I’ve got high expectations.”
Lozano, who became the head coach last week, said that she’s still learning the game and that there’s still things she needs to bring in and have the team work on.
Lindsay’s head coach Heather Sullenger said that she felt her girls played “fantastic” in their first outing.
“Fantastic, I’m super proud,” she said. “First game so you never know what’s going to happen. They did great, I was totally happy.”
In doubles, Lindsay’s No. 2 Agulera and Martinez struck first and went up 1-0. Granite Hills Diane Torres and Jelitza Alcantar then won the next four games before eventually winning 8-3. Lindsay forfeited the No. 3 doubles and Granite Hills’ Puente and Whited won the No. 1 doubles.