Corsairs Tennis Bounces Back with Sweep
The sun was high, while winds were constant on the Ocean View Park tennis courts as the Santa Monica Corsairs breezed past the Victor Valley Rams with a 7-0 win on Tuesday, March 27, in their final home game of the season.
Bouncing back from the team’s 9-0 loss against the Glendale Vaqueros, and a postponement of their match against the Ventura Pirates due to rain last week, the Corsairs currently own a 4-8 record on the season.
With the Rams bringing only four players against five for the Corsairs, one singles game was automatically given to SMC.
In court one, SMC standout player Abby Mullins played against sophomore Ally Samp and won with ease, posting a score of 6-0 and 6-1. Mullins, a passionate player known to exclaim phrases on the court such as, “come on, Abby,” was ultimately satisfied with her performance for the day. "The whole season’s been pretty good,” Mullins said. “[Just] a couple matches here and there that weren’t too pretty.”
Corsair Mina Girit played on court two against junior Ava Andrasi, giving the Corsairs another win with set scores of 6-0 and 6-2. On court three, Amanda Golling faced off against sophomore Lorene Connors with a win in straight sets of 6-0, 6-1.
Golling, relatively new to the sport, enjoyed the match and playing with the rest of the Corsairs this season. “I think we’re friends first, then teammates second,” Golling said.
Yurim Han, on court four, beat freshman Vanessa McAllister with a set score of 6-1 and 7-6, the latter set being the longest of the day. Though Han won both sets, she was hard on herself afterwards. “It was the worst day ever, I should have played so much better,” Han said. “I just couldn’t focus on anything. I should have tried to meditate.”
Head coach Richard Goldenson didn't think it was bad though. “I’m really proud of Yurim, she fought back and didn’t let the frustration overwhelm her and won that match,” Goldenson said. When asked about Han's performance, assistant coach Kathy Kellermann also added, “The most important thing is that she adjusted her game... she learned how to adjust her game and it was a first --- it was a breakthrough.”
After the singles, the score stood at 5-0 for the Corsairs. Doubles started later in the day, with court one consisting of Mullins and Girit against Samps and Andrasi. Court two held Ki Ho Hirayama, the SMC player who didn’t play during singles, and Golling, who played against Connors and McAllister.
The Corsairs won both doubles, with court one playing a clean 8-0 and court two ending the afternoon with a score of 8-1.
The Corsairs will play their final game of the season on Thursday, March 29 at Antelope Valley, a team which the Corsairs beat 7-2 earlier in the season.