Cate Girls’ Tennis overcame a 2-4 start in the first round-of-play to defeat Dos Pueblos High School 10-8.

Cate struck first with quick wins from Grace Fuss at #1 singles and Carol Cai/Fritze Mayer at #1 doubles, but that would be it for the Rams in round one. Dos Pueblos fielded got quick wins at #2 and #3 doubles and Alessa Sommer came from 2-3 down to win the next four games against sophomore Aminah Hill.

Cate quickly righted the ship in the second round, winning the next three sets and pulling even at 6-6 by the end of the second round, thanks to strong play from senior Mia Foster and sophomore Ashi Kamra at the #2 position.

Kamra and Foster continued their strong play in the third round with a 6-2 victory to duplicate their win in the second round. 

Cai/Mayer and Fuss remained undefeated on the season with convincing second and third round wins.

Hill rallied from her first round loss to collect two key wins, including the 10th and match-clinching win in the final round.

Coach Thorpe’s Comments

I think it’s been 10 years since we last played DP, and I remember the last one not going so well for us, so this was a good win. They’ve got a very balanced team and with this being our first week of match-play, they really had us on the back foot in that first round.

We’re fortunate to have unmovable rocks at #1 singles and doubles, but it takes more than six sets to win a match. So far this season, both against Santa Barbara and Dos Pueblos, we’ve had some less experienced players step up and get us big wins in the clutch. 

Ashi Kamra and Mia Foster were a combined 0-5 on Tuesday against Santa Barbara, but today, their two wins were the key to us taking this match. 

To me, that’s one sign of a quality team; on any given day, any player on the team is capable of stepping up for the big win when the match is on the line. I’m very proud of the way my girls competed and managed the pressure today.

What’s Next for Cate Girls’ Tennis

Cate, now 2-0 on the season, will open Tri-Valley League regular season play at home against La Reina at 3:45pm on Tuesday, September 24th.