By ARTHUR HSIEH It was the season opener for both teams and the opening day jitters was apparent for both teams, especially in the first round of play. Down 2-3, the Lady MInutemen had a chance to even up the score with their #1 singles player, Angela Hsieh, ahead against Westridge’s #1, Caroline Lopez, 5-4, […]
By ARTHUR HSIEH
It was the season opener for both teams and the opening day jitters was apparent for both teams, especially in the first round of play. Down 2-3, the Lady MInutemen had a chance to even up the score with their #1 singles player, Angela Hsieh, ahead against Westridge’s #1, Caroline Lopez, 5-4, 40-30. That set ended up going into a 6-6 tie-breaker, with Hsieh coming short, 6-7, and giving the Tigers a 4-2 lead. First round victories were had at the #2 spot for both singles and doubles, as both came back from huge deficits to prevail. #2 singles, Malena Smith, was down 1-4 before reeling off 5 straight games to defeat the Tigers’ #2, 6-4. #2 doubles, Reagan Atallah/Rose Zhang, were down 2-5 before rallying to a 7-6 tie-break victory.
The second round was a 3-3 draw, with Hsieh and Smith winning their sets, 6-0 and 6-3 respectively. After a tough, 4-6, first round loss, #1 doubles, Maddie Hernandez/Michael Wilkins, responded with solid tennis and a 6-1 victory, putting the score at 5-7.
The Lady Minutemen roared back in the third round with victories in 3 of their first 4 sets, including a stunner from #3 doubles, Hellen Hong/Stella Wang, who beat the Tigers’ #2 team, 6-2. Hsieh notched another 6-0 set and Hernandez/Wilkins won 6-2. With the score tied, 8-8, it came down to the final two singles matches. Westridge’s #2 singles defeated Maranatha’s #3, Aria Haver-Hill, 6-1, leaving Smith vs. the Tigers’ #1 as the lone remaining match. Ahead, 5-2, it looked like a promising opportunity; but it was not meant to be, as Lopez stormed back to win, 7-5.
It wasn’t the result that the Lady Minutemen desired, but this match showed that they have potential. The remaining 14 matches of the regular season will tell the story of whether that potential will be realized.
The Lady Minutemen go from tough to tougher (the Tigers are D-4) as they face D-3 powerhouse, the mighty Panthers of Pasadena Poly, on 9/8/17. In fact, 3 of their next 4 matches will be against D-3 powerhouses (Poly, Mayfield, So. Pas), each with a legitimate shot to win the CIF D-3 crown. By playing such tough competition, Maranatha hopes to build toughness and be able to be in the conversation to go deep into the CIF D-5 playoffs.
