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The Hollister High School girls tennis team failed to win a single one of their matches against second-ranked Santa Catalina High School in their final home game on Oct. 22. It was a disappointing but anticipated outcome, as they faced tough competition the entire season following their 2023 Pacific Coast Athletic League Championship in the Mission Division.
“This is our first year in Gabilan, moving up to the top division,” said Head Coach Ed Cecena. “We’ve pretty much been in the middle division for many years. But one of the rewards of winning is you get to move up. We have faced some elite players and taken our lumps.”
Top-ranked singles player Jina Youn, a senior, held out the longest with a two-hour match against Gloria Arastoupour, which saw her come achingly close to taking the first set before being defeated in the second. But Youn took the loss in stride.
“I like playing in this league even though you’re not winning as much,” Youn said after the match. “But even though we’re not in top place, we’re still competing, and I have improved a lot this year.”
Of the seven matches against the visiting team, only doubles players Alice Williams and Ally Espinoza managed to win a set against Santa Catalina before they also went down in defeat.
Cecena said he was content with the team’s fourth-place standing, considering the talent gap between his team and the top three high schools: Carmel, Santa Catalina and top-ranked Stevenson.
“We’re beating the teams we’re supposed to beat,” he said, “and we’ve had some competitive matches. We also had some really fast matches where we got beat pretty good. But overall, it’s a new experience.”
Coach Rick Espino said that even though the players in the top three teams are very hard to beat, the girls remained motivated.
“Those teams are just overpowering,” he said. “But when you go up against stronger players, you become a stronger player. Our girls come out each time and try their best, and if they fall short, we’re still satisfied with what we’ve done.”
“This year has been useful,” Cecena said, “because we can see what we need to do to improve. We learned a lot, and that’s our takeaway. We have returning players who are excited about tennis, and seeing this caliber of play really motivates them.”
The Balers’ number two player, senior Kate Ang, has played for the team only two years. She said it’s much harder to compete against private high schools like Santa Catalina, where the players often have private coaches.
“You’re going up against girls that have been playing since they were babies,” she said. “I have not been playing as long and I don’t have as much experience. It is tougher, and I give myself credit for playing like I do.”
Though the season did not go well for the Balers, Cecena said they have a good enough standing to remain in the higher division, and he will rely on the school’s off-season to improve the team’s chances next year.
“It will be very difficult for whoever inherits Kate and Jina’s spots as No. 1 and No. 2,” he said. “All I know is that we are going to compete the best we can.”
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