By Brian Reed-Baiotto, Sports Editor Ask his teammates or coaches, and they’ll tell you that Matthew Alleman is a quiet and humble young man. His stats, though, over his record-setting career at Maranatha, speak volumes and do so loudly. Alleman went 54-3 overall this year, and two of the losses came against Mark Keppel High […]
By Brian Reed-Baiotto, Sports Editor
Alleman serving
Ask his teammates or coaches, and they’ll tell you that Matthew Alleman is a quiet and humble young man.
His stats, though, over his record-setting career at Maranatha, speak volumes and do so loudly.
Alleman went 54-3 overall this year, and two of the losses came against Mark Keppel High School when he was playing through an injured foot.
Alleman is the only three-time Olympic League MVP and his leadership and talent landed Maranatha in the CIF-SS Division 4 team championship last month, which the boys program had never experienced.
For his quiet, but steady leadership, and his success on the court, Matthew Alleman has been named the Pasadena Sports Now Boys Tennis Singles Player of the Year.
Alleman’s career record in four years at Maranatha was 184-15, which comes out to a 93% winning percentage.
His career Olympic League record was 82-4, and he never lost a league match in his sophomore, junior or senior season’s.
“Matt has had an historic, record-setting career at MHS. He has been our go-to guy for the last 3 years,” Maranatha coach Arthur Hsieh said. “I’m proud not only of his growth on the court, but also of his growth as a person. We’re not only going to miss his play, but his presence. We’ll be rooting him on at Westmont.”
Perhaps Alleman’s most clutch moment of the season came in the semifinals of the CIF-SS Division 4 semifinals against Mission Viejo.
The Maranatha senior trailed 3-4 in a crucial match up at Occidental College, and Alleman rallied and earned a much-needed point for his team.
“This year was one of my favorites, because of how hard everyone worked to be the best they possibly could,” Alleman said. “Although we may not have had the skill of some of our previous teams, we rose the challenge and proved that we were just as capable. It showed as we made it to CIF finals, which no MHS team has ever done before. While we didn’t win, I am still so proud of my teammates for how hard they fought throughout the year, it was a great way to finish off my career.”
Fellow senior Drew Sierra, who is one-half of the Maranatha No. 1 doubles team and our Pasadena Sports Now Doubles Team of the Year, said Alleman is someone the entire roster looked to.
“In practice, we played with him sometimes. He’s an amazing player and is on another level.,” Sierra said. “Matt is a quiet guy, and leads by example. He is a model for people for follow.”
Getting To Know Matthew Alleman:
Favorite Athlete: Kobe Bryant
Favorite Team: Manchester City
Favorite Movie: The Blindside
Favorite Musical Artist: ASAP Rocky
Musical Artist Some May Be Surprised To See On My Ipod: The Beatles
Famous Person I’d Most Like A Conversation With: Roger Federer
