Amanda Marshall was only a sophomore last year when she made it
to the semifinals of the Tri-County Athletic League tennis
tournament. There, Marshall fell to Kelsey Nicks of Salinas in
straight sets.
Hollister – Amanda Marshall was only a sophomore last year when she made it to the semifinals of the Tri-County Athletic League tennis tournament. There, Marshall fell to Kelsey Nicks of Salinas in straight sets.
Since then, Nicks graduated, and Marshall is only a junior.
“We’re pretty strong in singles,” said San Benito High School tennis coach Ed Cecena. “Amanda Marshall will be our no. 1 again this year. She played no. 1 last year and won the majority of her matches … Amanda will be one of the top players [in league].”
Cecena said he was pleased with the progress he’s seen so far through the preseason, with strong singles players returning to the team.
Marshall will anchor the singles players this season for the Haybalers. The squad, who begin their non-conference schedule today at Seaside, will look to improve upon their 6-6 TCAL record last year, 8-11 overall.
While Marshall will be listed as no. 1 heading into today’s matchup, Yumi Chang, Abby Woods and Kaitlyn O’Keefe will round out the no. 2, 3 and 4 spots, respectively.
“I’m really happy with Yumi’s progress, too. She played no. 4 singles for us last year,” Cecena said. “She took a lot of lessons over the summer, played tournaments, and really has made a lot of strides this year. I’m looking for her to win a lot of her matches.”
The question surrounding the Lady ‘Balers is the doubles teams, which currently lack depth when compared to the stronger TCAL teams, such as Notre Dame and Salinas.
Anchoring the no. 1 spot goes to Elena Fata and Rachel Maheu, who were the no. 2 team last season.
“They moved up to no. 1 and I’m looking for them to be pretty strong,” Cecena said.
Crystal Perreira and Marisa Ibarra will play at the no. 2 spot, with Jaclyn Roquemore and Lauren Ademek rounding out the no. 3 position.
Cecena added, though, that the players compete during practice in challenge matches, which is essentially an inner-squad tournament that continually updates the singles and doubles rankings.
“The singles are pretty well-established,” Cecena said. “There will be some changes as the season goes on because of challenge matches. They’ll be challenging each other periodically trying to move up the ladder.
“Same with the doubles, nothing is set in stone. Depending on how the challenge matches go, those teams could move a slot up or down.”
The Lady ‘Balers will open their season today at Seaside at 3:30pm, a team they’ve usually seen success over in years past. Two non-conference games that will most likely be circled on the Lady ‘Baler schedule is Aptos and Carmel, two teams Cecena said were comparable to TCAL powerhouses Salinas and Notre Dame.
“That’s when we’ll be really tested and it’ll give us a better idea of where we’re at,” Cecena said. “We always have a goal of winning a league title.
“For me, the most important goal is to teach them how to play the game and have fun with the game … Hopefully, it’ll be something they can continue for the rest of their lives.”
